Mobius: The Final Stand Part 2
by Ravenskid0206
Summary: Life with Cosmo back... Follows directly after the events of "Mobius: The Final Stand Part 1"
1. Chapter 1

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 25  
Cream's house  
5:13 pm 

Evening had descended across the land of Mobius; the fading sun giving off brilliant and colorful flashes of orange, red, and purple. It reflected its radiant colors as it vividly contrasted with the darkening landscape and forestry, now engulfed in dusk. The drone of crickets chirping and other bugs flittering about resonated in the quiet night, as the sounds of other animals slowly and quietly died away. At the top of a small hill rested a cozily-sized house; its decorative flower bushes and maple trees dotting the front and back yard. Inside, Raymond had just finished telling his story in front of a stunned audience.

"…And so, the rest is history… that's how I came to be here…" As he finished speaking, the rest of the room remained silent, some of them with tears in their eyes. Taking this as a cue to continue, Raymond spoke up again: 

"So really… even though I've been through so much, I'm still not the hero. Not of this story." Raymond turned to face them and gestured with his hands, spreading them out in front of him. "It's all you guys. You saved the universe, not me. I'm just behind the scenes, working out my own problems…"

Raymond managed a small smile, as Sonic started to clap slowly at first, then Knuckles and Tails, until the whole room was respectfully applauding. "Thanks guys for listening… hope that made things a bit more clear…" 

As he stood by the doorway afterwards, they came up to him and gave their condolences. 

"Take care buddy! I KNOW that Emily's proud of ya!" Sonic encouragingly shouted as he grinned and sped away, disappearing into the darkness of the night. 

Raymond nodded thankfully. "Thanks, I know so too…" 

As Knuckles, Rouge, the Chaotix, and Amy left, each greeting Raymond, he smiled and thanked them in return. 

Finally, Tails and Cosmo came up to Raymond. As they approached him, Cosmo was the first to speak… 

"Why? Why did you have to do that?" Cosmo sighed looked down at the ground. "I don't deserve—" 

Raymond held up his hand thoughtfully, cutting her off and staring into her eyes. "Yeah, you do actually. You sacrificed your own life, to save everyone else's. That's the most selfless act of kindness I've ever seen…. Just think of it as a thank-you for saving my life too…" Raymond kindly assured her. 

"Still…" Cosmo continued sorrowfully. "But you loved Emily so much! So why bring me back instead?" 

Raymond smiled warmly. "Because, Tails needs you. I can see that both of you love each other so much too. I know Emily would have agreed with my decision, and I'm betting so do you two. So who am I to contradict?" 

"But" Tails started. "Don't you still want her back?" 

Raymond looked away, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. After a long while, he started to speak sadly, slowly. "Yeah…I still do…" Raymond turned his head back around to face them. "But I know that she's alright where she is. I don't have to constantly worry about her safety against enemies…" Raymond trailed off and suddenly started, remembering something. "Oh, wait a second. Here, I have something for you guys…" 

Raymond drew back one hand and reached behind his back, unsheathing his swords he won from Slash. He handed the green one to Cosmo and the white one to Tails. 

"These I also want you to have for saving my life after battling the Minotaur again. Sorry, it's just they bring back a lot of bad memories…" Tails and Cosmo tried to resist, but Raymond was already climbing into the cockpit of his ship. 

"Where are you going?" Tails wondered out loud, clutching his sword. 

Raymond grinned fearlessly. "I'm leaving. I've done my job, now I've got to back to Newark to take my revenge." 

"Buut…" Tails countered. "Why don't you stay here with us? At least one night? And besides, you're going to get killed!" 

Raymond turned on the engine as it revved up smoothly. "I've long been ready to die… I've got to go back…" He trailed off, looking off into the distance. 

"Won't you stay here please? At least won't you do it for us?" Cosmo asked. 

Raymond looked down thoughtfully and pondered for a few long moments. Then, he gave a long sigh and turned the engine off. 

"Well…if you really want me to stay, then I guess I could for a short while…" 

As Raymond hopped down on the grassy field, Tails asked him again. "Why do you need to go out and fight Malcolm? Why not stay here, and if he comes, we'll all help you!" 

Raymond shook his head vigorously from side to side. "Sorry, it's WAAY to dangerous. I don't want to lose any of you guys either." 

"So? We've been in dangerous situations before!" Tails argued. Raymond stopped walking, and turned back to face him. 

"Yeah well... Not like this… nothing like this before…." Raymond mumbled, and kept on walking on top of the barely orange-reflected sunlit lawn. He turned to address the two. 

"Here, I actually need to go back to my ship and gather my belongings, so I'll be back. You two can go on without me, I'll catch up later." Raymond turned around and sprinted back in the direction he came from, leaving Tails and Cosmo standing there awkwardly in silence with just the swaying grass brushing gently against their ankles. 

Tails hesitantly turned to Cosmo and blushed. "Soo… uhhh…. Do you want to stay at my house too?" 

Cosmo blushed as well. "Umm... okay… I mean if that's alright with you…." 

"Of course that is Cosmo!" Tails exclaimed. "I'd love to have you stay, just as much as I love y—" Tails realized what he was about to say. 

To his surprise, that made Cosmo giggle. "Really? You love me?" Tails nodded, embarrassed. "Awww!" Cosmo smiled hugely and wrapped her arms around a blushing Tails.

"Hehe..well…" Tails was about to say when he got cut off. 

"Uhh.. ahem?" 

Raymond jumped up out of nowhere, startling the two. Tails and Cosmo broke apart, looking down at the ground. 

"Uhh…" Tails started. 

"We weren't doing anything…" Cosmo finished. 

Raymond smirked. "Riiight… sorry for bothering you guys... Next time I'll leave you alone longer." Raymond rushed by ahead, carrying a large backpack, leaving Tails and Cosmo alone again. 

"So… uhh.. we should probably go too," Tails told Cosmo. She smiled sweetly in return. 

"Okay Tails! I can't wait! We really get to be with each other just like I promised before when we were battling the Meterex!" 

Up ahead entering the foliage, Raymond sighed, thinking about Emily. But then, he smiled and shrugged his depression off. Hearing Tails and Cosmo happy together made him feel a lot better. And besides, he could sense Emily still in his thoughts sometimes…. 

The three of them reached Tails' workshop as Raymond dumped his contents on the middle of the floor. He started to sort through it, throwing away pieces of junk and trash. Tails walked up, and started to examine the pile too. 

"Spam?" Tails held up the can and wrinkled his nose. Raymond tried to grab it back. 

"Hey! Anything tastes good after you've eaten what they serve in the Newark Army!" Raymond reached for it, but Tails tossed it up and caught it with one of his tails. Tails then held up an odd looking gun. 

"What's-" Raymond noticed Tails and yelped. 

"Hey, don't point that at me!" Raymond grabbed the muzzle and pointed it to the ground. 

After spending an amusing hour or so sorting through his stuff, Raymond packed it all back again, and told Tails he was going to take a nap. 

"I'll be upstairs, if anyone needs me…" Raymond told the two yawning, and then walked up the stairs. 

"Hey thanks again for letting me stay Tails!" Raymond told Tails. 

Tails grinned. "No problem! Don't mention it!" 

Raymond just laughed. "Well, anyways I'm guessing you two want to be left alone, so cya!" 

Raymond disappeared upstairs. 

Tails and Cosmo were left sitting there on the couch silently. Both of them wanted to tell the other person how much they loved them, but were too embarrassed to do so. Then, Tails remembered his promise he had made this morning to the plant that had come from Cosmo… 

Tails sighed, and mustered up the courage to talk. 

"Umm, Cosmo?" Tails hesitantly turned to look at her, and stopped. Just seeing Cosmo made his heart beat faster and his voice get stuck in his throat. She turned around to look at him, smiling. 

"Yes, Tails?" She politely answered. 

"Ummmm…" Tails couldn't talk. "Uhh… Well…" He desperately thought of how he could place the words around in his head so that it would come out right. 

Cosmo leaned over and held a finger to his lips, shushing him. "Is what you said earlier true?" She asked him. 

Tails gulped and nodded. Then, he spoke up. "Yeah Cosmo… of course I love you!" The words seemed to be coming out easier and more smoothly the more he talked and went on. "I have since we first met when you crashed here from that spaceship. And I've enjoyed so much all the time we were able to spend together when we fought the Meterex, trying to make you feel welcome and special…" Tails was about to say more when Cosmo gently held Tail's muzzle and brought it closer to her face as the two kissed… 

Upstairs, Raymond was lying on the bed looking up at the ceiling, arms folded behind his head. He lazily traced circles with one finger in front of his face, thinking… 

"Hmm... I'm going to make a wild prediction and say the two of them are already kissing now.." Raymond muttered to himself… 

Tails and Cosmo stayed like that together for a minute, hugging tightly. Warmth flowed from each of their bodies and into each other, and the feel of each other's lips on their own made them want to stay like this forever… 

Finally, they broke away, smiling at each other. 

"Wow… that was…" Tails started. 

"…just amazing…." Cosmo finished. 

The two of them held hands, as Cosmo rested her head on Tails' shoulder, closing her eyes. The

two of them soon fell asleep like that, in each other's arms, warm and content…. 

Maybe life was going to be good after all….


	2. Chapter 2

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 26  
8:00 am 

Sunlight filtered through the blinds of an open window nearby, the slight breeze lazily ruffling the curtains. Its light rays gently shone across the face of a certain, sleeping orange-yellow fox, making him slowly open one eye...

Tails opened his mouth wide, and sluggishly yawned. He was about to stretch his arms when he felt someone grabbing on to it. Cosmo was leaning against him, still sleeping. His left arm was wrapped around her shoulders, and she was grasping it gently with her other free hand. Tails smiled, and looked over at Cosmo lovingly. Her smooth green hair, her delicate, pretty face… Tails leaned back into her and closed his eyes again, sighing happily. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her like this… 

Finally, Cosmo slowly opened her eyes, and moved her head off of Tails. She slowly blinked, and shook her head. Tails smiled as she cutely yawned, and sat up straight. Then, she turned around and stared at Tails with a big smile on her face…. 

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK 

"Ugh…" Tails groaned as the moment was interrupted by someone knocking on the door. Annoyed, he got off of the couch and made his way to the door. Cosmo followed close behind, still tired and sleepy.

Tails swung open the front door. "Yes?" He asked in a slightly irritated tone of voice. 

Sonic was standing on the front porch flashing his trademark grin. 

"Wanna go for a run, Tails?" Sonic asked cheerfully. "It's such a nice day outside!" He gestured with his hands at the scenery behind him. 

Tails yawned lightly again. "Well, I just kinda woke up….but…" 

He stopped when he felt Cosmo tapping his shoulder lightly. "Umm.. what does he mean by a 'run'?" Cosmo asked politely, her blue eyes looking into Tails'. 

Tails smiled knowingly. "Oh, it's just this thing we used to do back a while before the whole going to Chris' world and the Meterex incident happened…" Tails turned around to Sonic. "Sure! Unless you're not up for it…" Tails challenged competitively. 

Sonic smirked. "Me? Not 'up for it'? Of course I am!" Sonic countered. 

Tails jumped off the porch to the ground. "Well then, what are we waiting for?" 

Then he remembered something. Tails turned around to Cosmo, who was smiling at him. "Hey, wanna join us?" Tails offered. 

Cosmo shook her head. "Umm.. I was going to sleep a little bit longer, if that's okay with you…" 

Tails grinned. "Sure it is Cosmo! You can do whatever you like because my house is yours too! Cya later!" 

Sonic and Tails ran off and sped into the distance, laughing playfully… 

Upstairs, Raymond rolled around in his bed, wrapping a pillow around his head, crying out: 

"Please!... it's too early in the morning to be yelling!..." 

Downstairs, Cosmo shut the door closed and started to explore the place. The house seemed to look like any other she'd been too like Cream's or Amy's; except there were a lot of small mechanical related projects or trinkets that Tails was obviously working on all around the place. Sometimes Cosmo had to make sure she didn't accidentally step on one that may be lying sprawled on the ground. As she walked past the carpeted living room, she stopped and noticed the two swords that Raymond had given them the day before set on top of the oaken table. One of them was a pearly white, and the other, emerald green… 

Cosmo tenatively reached out and picked the green one off the table, hefting it carefully. It was a bit heavy, but still very lightweight, which surprised her. It weighed as much as it would have if it was made out of plastic. Maybe it was something in the type of metal it used… 

Cosmo put the sword back down. She or Tails would ask Raymond later about it. He mentioned that he obtained it after defeating one of his enemies. Cosmo thought hard… 

"Who was it again? Slash? I think that was his name…" Cosmo thought to herself while making her way to the kitchen to get something to eat. She hoped Tails wouldn't mind… 

It was still pretty early in the morning, but already the sun was shining brightly over the tops of the surrounding trees, the weather decently hot. Sonic and Tails were panting hard, bent over, hands on their knees. They were standing in the middle of a plain made up of long grass, a narrow dirt road behind them. Tall pine trees made up the forest that surrounded them… Then, Sonic stood up.. 

"Haha! Looks like I win again!" Sonic crowed victoriously. Tails rolled his eyes. 

"Well... shouldn't you ALWAYS win? After all, you are the fastest thing alive, right?" Tails teased. 

"Hey you are pretty fast yourself!" Sonic complemented. "But yeah you're right." Sonic waited for Tails to catch his breath. "Wow, we're pretty out of shape, huh?" 

Tails then stood up straight. "Well we haven't exactly been practicing for how long was it? A year?" 

Sonic nodded. "Still no excuse for being THIS tired after running here." He grinned. "Race ya back!" 

Tails placed a hand under his chin thoughtfully. "Well… hmm…" Then suddenly Tails took off, laughing. 

Sonic raced after him, shouting. "Hey! That's no fair! You got a head start!" 

Cosmo was sitting on the kitchen table, peacefully eating a bowl of frosted flakes. She was just about to eat another scoop, and had it right near her mouth, when… 

BOOM! 

Startled, she spilled the milk and cereal in the spoon on the table, jumping back just in time to avoid it spilling on her dress. She looked up at the ceiling, where the noise appeared to have come from. 

"Raymond?" Cosmo asked. 

BOOM! 

Cosmo jumped again. Curious, she walked over to the stairs, and bounded up them. As she reached the top, she heard a succession of the same noise. She reached Raymond's room, and put her ear to the door. She crouched down a little bit, and slowly opened the door, then flung it open. 

Raymond was standing near the corner of the room with a pillow over his head. Hearing the door open, he turned to see Cosmo, who was standing there with a confused expression on her face. 

"Oh, sorry, I just saw a spider in the room…" Raymond explained as he brought the pillow down again on the ground. 

BOOM! 

Cosmo rolled her eyes… 

Tails waved goodbye to Sonic, and reached the front of his house, sweating hard. He took the keys out of his pocket, and placed one of them into the lock and turned it, opening the door to see Cosmo bound down the stairs and envelop him in a tight hug. 

"Hi Tails!" Cosmo greeted him. 

"Uhh... hi?" Tails replied nervously. 

Cosmo giggled. "Aww.. you're blushing!" 

Tails lowered his head to hide his embarrassment. "Am not!" 

Cosmo giggled again. "Are too! Well anyways, no matter what, you're still my cute fuzz head!" 

Tails blushed harder this time. "C-Can we go inside now?" 

Cosmo laughed, and she and Tails went inside, closing the door…. 

They both went inside, just in time to see Raymond sleepily navigate his way down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning. Tails grinned, "Hey Raymond! You finally woke up!" 

Raymond grinned in return. "Good morning to you too..." Raymond stumbled down the last bit of stairway, barely keeping his balance. "I was going to actually park my spaceship in your workshop because I thought that it would probably need a few repairs... Do you mind?" 

Tails shook his head. "No, not at all!" 

Raymond opened the door and started to head out. "Well, anyways I also promised to leave you guys alone so that you can do all that romantic mushy stuff without me intruding... Soo Cya!" Raymond raced out the door, leaving Tails and Cosmo standing there blushing furiously. 

"Umm..." Tails tried to say something. 

"Uhhh.." Cosmo said. 

Both of them looked at each other, and burst out laughing. 

"Well.." Tails started after he composed himself. "What do you want to do?" Tails asked Cosmo.

Cosmo thought hard, but couldn't think of anything. "I don't know.. Whatever you want to do Tails I'm fine with."

Tails laughed. "Oh come on: there must be something that you want!" 

Cosmo slowly shrugged. "Well… I don't really know much about your planet since I haven't been here very long... it would be nice if we could go out... I mean if you want to..." 

Tails grinned. "Sure! That sounds great! I'll show you around the whole place!" Tails checked his watch. "Wow, it's only 9 am?" Tails asked surprised. 

Cosmo laughed. "Well.. that explains why I'm still pretty tired..." 

Tails nodded. "Hey, me too! Do you mind if we sleep a little longer?..." 

"Sure!" Cosmo sat back down on the couch and motioned for Tails to sit next to her. Then, she leaned against Tails again, closing her eyes peacefully. "I love you so much Tails.." Cosmo breathed sleepily. 

Tails smiled warmly at her. "So do I Cosmo. And I promise to spend the rest of our lives together with you proving that!" 

Both of them again slept together on the couch, gently snoring, comforted by each other's presence...


	3. Chapter 3

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 27

Tails' house

9:41 am

Tails had just woken up again for the second time that day. As he slowly tried to sit up, he glanced over at Cosmo, who was already awake, staring at him. When she noticed that he had become aware of her looking at him, she blushed and turned away.

"Oh, sorry Tails..." Cosmo quickly apologized, embarrassed.

Confused, Tails asked her. "What would you have to be sorry about?"

"Oh… uh for staring at you without permission I guess…" Cosmo responded, still looking down at her feet, which were swinging over the side of the couch.

Tails just laughed it off. "Doesn't that sound silly to you? Of course you can stare at me all you want! In fact, I think it's sweet of you that you'd do that!"

Cosmo sighed sadly. "Oh… well I just thought that it wouldn't be polit—"

Tails cut her off, and gently placed a hand on the side her face, turning Cosmo towards him. He examined her, concerned. "Cosmo…" Tails melted into a warm smile. "You don't have to feel sorry or bad about anything…" Tails then took one of Cosmo's hands in his, and looked deeply into her clear blue eyes.

Cosmo looked back into Tails' aqua blue eyes, in awe. She had been awake, admiring his cuteness, warmly looking at him while he slept peacefully. But she felt bad for some reason for doing so… And yet Tails was telling her that it was all right…

"But—" Cosmo started, but was quickly interrupted by Tails hugging her. As they embraced tightly, she didn't know why, but tears flowed from her eyes. Maybe it was because she was still so overcome with the fact that she was really back alive, or maybe it was because she still had the pain and loss of her family. But deep down in her heart, she knew it was because of how happy she was to have someone like Tails…

Finally, they broke away and sat like that together, cuddling for a few minutes. As Tails sat beside Cosmo, gently rubbing her shoulder, he turned towards her and smiled. "So, you wanted to go out, right?"

Cosmo, feeling a lot better, smiled back in return. "Sure! Well I mean if you want…"

Tails grinned. "I want whatever you want Cosmo! All I want is to make you happy!"

Cosmo was speechless. She knew that Tails loved her, but she didn't know that he cared THIS much about her… She felt so warm and loving inside because of this…

"Tails..." she began. "you're so nice to me…" Cosmo sighed.

"Well, you deserve it!" Tails smiled. "When we were fighting the Meterex, all you ever did was be kind and encouraging to everyone! And also, I love you so much, that's why!" Tails replied.

"Well…" Cosmo said. "I love you too, with all my heart. It's just that—"

"Well then, that's settled!" Tails finished. "If we both love each other, then there's no reason I shouldn't treat you the best possible!"

Tails sat back in the sofa, still smiling at Cosmo. She smiled back sweetly in return, cheerfully.

"Wow…thanks for making me feel a lot better, Tails.." Cosmo told Tails. He flashed a grin back in reply.

"No problem!" Tails then stood up off the couch and stretched. "Well, wanna go now? There's so much that I want to show you!" Tails grabbed Cosmo's hands, and raced to the door. "Come on!" Tails and Cosmo laughed together cheerfully, and ran outside into the brilliant sunlight and nice weather.

The first thing Tails did was take Cosmo to his workshop in the back of his house. As they ran playfully through the grass in the backyard, Cosmo noticed in there were three ships: the Blue Typhoon, the X-tornado, and the new ship that Tails was currently in the process of working on. Tails ran over to the X-tornado, and carefully lifted Cosmo into the cockpit. Then, he himself seated himself in the driver's seat, and closed the top. Tails turned around to Cosmo, and grinned. "Ready?" Tails asked her, giving her a thumbs-up sign.

She nodded and smiled back. "Ready!"

Tails powered on the engines, and thrust the throttles at full speed ahead. The X-tornado zoomed out of the workshop, out into the clear blue sky. Cosmo was in awe at the beautiful, picture-perfect scenes beneath her. She could see Tails' house in the distance, along with Amy's and Cream's house situated some ways to the Northwest. To the direct South was the ocean, and up to the Northeast was a large city, sprawled with tall buildings. Way up in the North was a bunch of smaller, less populated towns. To the East and West of them were a diversity of wide plains and lush forests. Cosmo gasped in surprise when Tails suddenly did a nosedive towards Mobius City, and did a barrel roll.

As Tails righted himself, he looked back to see Cosmo with her eyes tightly closed, gripping the sides of the chair. "You alright?" Tails asked, worried.

"Yep. Just fine." Cosmo squeaked.

Tails laughed. "Sorry for doing that. It's just a habit I have, forgot you were back there…" he apologized.

After the better part of an hour sightseeing, Tails finally landed back in his workshop. He opened up the cockpit, and carried Cosmo out, helped her to her feet.

"Enjoy it?" Tails asked.

Cosmo nodded and smiled. "Yeah! There's so much to see! Thanks Tails!" She hugged him.

Tails blushed. "Uhh.. no problem Cosmo!" He scratched the back of his head nervously.

Cosmo giggled and let him go. "Well, it's still only like 11 in the morning, so what do YOU want to do?" she asked him politely.

Tails shrugged. "Well, I don't know. Before, I used to spend the entire day working on and repairing stuff, but now that you're here with me, I really want to spend every second of every minute with you…"

Cosmo giggled again. "Oh dear, I hope I'm not distracting you from anything important you might have to work on…"

Tails quickly shook his head. "No, of course not!" Tails grinned. "I love spending time with you!"

"Well…" Cosmo was about to say before remembering something. "Wait where's Raymond? Wasn't he supposed to be back here?"

Tails scratched the back of his head. "I don't know… " Tails said thoughtfully. "But I'm sure he's alright."

"Well if you think so…" Cosmo replied. Then, she had a thought. While Tails was still thinking, she inched closer to him, and when he turned to look at her, she kissed him suddenly.

As Cosmo let go, she noticed Tails was blushing furiously. "Wh…what was that for?" he asked, a bit dazed.

Cosmo giggled at his reaction. "Can't I kiss the person that I love so much?" she asked him.

"Wel….well…" Tails stuttered. "I…I…guess…" he smiled. "It's just that THAT was a bit unexpected…"

Tails tried to walk, but started to tip around, still smiling and blushing furiously.

"You didn't act like this before, Tails" Cosmo noticed, amused.

"Heh… Well… I don't know…" Tails continued to tip around, smiling. He somehow managed to find his way to the door of his house, and pull it open, much to Cosmo's amusement. Then, he fell over on his couch, STILL smiling.

"I guess I'M not used to being treated this way either," Tails tried to explain. Cosmo laughed. "Well, I'm glad that you're happy!" Cosmo beamed.

Right then, the phone rang. Tails tried to sit up, but fell back over on the sofa.

"Don't worry, I'll get it!" Cosmo ran over to the phone and picked it up. "Hello?" she asked sweetly.

"Congratulations! You have just received ONE MILLION DOLLARS!" the voice on the other side replied. Cosmo was dumbfounded. "What?" she asked; confused.

The mysterious person just laughed. "Sorry, just kidding, though that would be nice…."

"Raymond?" Cosmo asked.

"The one and only!" Raymond replied merrily. "Sorry if I was disturbing any romantic moments the two of you might be having…"

Cosmo blushed. "Umm…."

Raymond laughed again. "Never mind, you don't have to tell me, I understand." Raymond sighed. "Well, is Tails here?"

"Yeah," Cosmo replied. "Here, I'll put him on." Cosmo turned around and walked back over to Tails, who was lying on the sofa. "Here, it's Raymond…" Cosmo handed the phone to him.

"Yeah?" Tails asked, fully recovered.

"Hey, Tails," Raymond answered. There was a long pause. "Are you two busy?"

"Not really…" Tails said.

"Do you mind if you come over here, there's something that you might want to see…" Raymond said, his voice a bit lowered and more serious.

"Why? Is something wrong?" Tails asked concerned.

"Nope. Just something really weird happened. Thought you and Cosmo might want to check it out. I'm near the middle of yours and Cream's house."

"Uhh.. Okay… We'll be over shortly!" Tails ended the phone call, and sat back up.

"Raymond says he found something weird, and that we should go over and check it out," Tails explained to Cosmo, who was sitting beside him. She nodded in return.

"Okay! What are we waiting for?" Cosmo said.

Tails grinned. "That's the spirit! Let's go!"

Tails and Cosmo rushed out the door to the X-tornado, ready for anything.

Except…what they would soon discover would greatly surprise both of them…


	4. Chapter 4

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 28

11:56 am

Tails and Cosmo were currently in the X-tornado, flying towards Cream's house. As the green tops of the trees in the forest rushed by, both of them were keeping an eye out for Raymond along the way. Earlier, he had urgently called them and requested them to come look at something that he had discovered…

"There!" Cosmo pointed. In the middle of the forest was a small clearing, not much bigger than the figure standing in it. Raymond was standing in the middle, waving his arms frantically, shouting something inaudible. Tails nodded in acknowledgement, and steered the plane to land, banking down…

The X-tornado managed to land in the small space, thanks to Tails' expert piloting skills. Raymond ran over to the X-tornado, his clothes and hair whipping in the wind that the turbines on the plane created. Tails and Cosmo hopped out energetically as Raymond managed to call out over the noise. "Hey guys!" Raymond exclaimed.

"Hey, Raymond!" Tails replied. He flashed a thumbs up sign. Then, he looked around carefully, taking in the surroundings. "So what was it that you wanted to show us?"

"Oh yeah," Raymond turned around and started to walk the other direction, motioning for them to follow. He led them through a small clearing in the woods. "It's over this way!" Raymond shouted to them. Raymond sped past the trees, Tails and Cosmo right behind him.

After a few minutes of walking through the dense foliage, Raymond signaled for both of them to be quiet.

"Here, I've come across something really cool!" Raymond told both of them excitedly. He crouched down low, Tails and Cosmo following his lead. Then, Raymond started to crawl through the bushes for several meters until he came across a strange looking space-ship that had somehow crash-landed, creating a big crater in the middle of the forest. Smoke was still trickling from it, and the front of it seemed to be damaged beyond repair.

Raymond pointed at it. "There! When I was flying back to your house, I saw this come flying out of the sky, and land right here. I wanted to check it out, but I decided that since you're good at building machines and stuff that you would know what this is!"

Tails and Cosmo stood by, curiously but cautiously inspecting it. It was just a blank silver pod, nothing amazing about it that jumped out at them. As they did so, Tails suddenly had a flashback to when Eggman launched a bomb in the middle of Station Square…

"Well, aren't you going to like take it apart or something?" Raymond asked, tapping his foot impatiently.

Tails scratched the back of his head in thought. "Oh, uh, well we don't know if this is potentially dangerous. It could be a bomb or some explosive weapon you know…" Tails answered.

"Right, okay…." Raymond said thoughtfully. The three of them stood there for another few minutes, trying to decide what to do. "So, are we just going to stand here?" Raymond asked.

Tails sighed. "Well, what do you suggest?" he turned to Cosmo. She looked back at him, surprised that he would ask her opinion.

"I… don't know…" Cosmo said. "But… shouldn't we try to figure out what this is?"

Tails nodded. "Well, I know that this is some sort of alien space-craft. It somehow managed to find its way into our atmosphere, and then the sheer force of gravity caused it to crash-land."

They stood there, still carefully watching the plane. Then, Raymond suddenly leapt up on top of it.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to try to figure out what all this is about!" Raymond pulled out one of his mechanical wrist bands, and used it to punch the top of the ship, fracturing it. It rumbled slightly, and then the front half of it snapped open as Raymond tumbled to the ground. To everyone's surprise, an unconscious figure fell out of the ship.

Cosmo gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. "Ga—Galaxina?"

(Way back in Newark millions of miles away)

A red hedgehog with an important looking uniform patrolled around the place, looking diligently from side to side. On his chest hung a few medals, clinking whenever he turned. He strode by two guards at the city gate, who saluted him immediately when they noticed his presence.

"Sir!" They raised their hands to their foreheads.

Commander Flash nodded curtly. "Continue your duties!" he ordered. They saluted again as he walked on through the city streets towards Malcolm. Malcolm appeared to be in a deep conversation with someone else, avidly arguing about something… As Flash reached Malcolm, he quickly took out a few pieces of paper from his breast pocket.

"Sir," Flash began. He handed the papers to Malcolm who took them and carefully inspected it. "It seems as though we have successfully conquered most of the territories to the East as well as the North. All that remains is a few towns in the West…"

Malcolm nodded. "Good." He turned to look up at Flash. "Oh, Commander: your ships are almost ready. They'll be completed in a few days."

Flash grinned. His battalion of now 1200 men were all armed and ready to go conquer some planets as well as hunt for the pesky Raymond. Beside Malcolm, a green stoat coughed politely.

"Sir," Commander Sludge began. "My army has received reports that Commanders Metal and Gravity are already on the march to attack and besiege the remaining cities. Permission to join them?"

"Permission granted." Malcolm dismissed Sludge, who smartly saluted, and walked away to rally his own battalion. Malcolm sighed in thought. That left Juggernaut and Needler, both of which were in the Eastern cities, celebrating their recent victories. In just a few days, most of the planet had been conquered thanks to their brilliant tactics and strategies… Malcolm estimated that the entire planet would be subjugated in just another couple of days. Then, he could refocus his army to go off into space. Of course Flash was already going, and Malcolm was already planning to send the rest of his commanders and army. But someone needed to hold Newark while he was gone…

Malcolm dismissed Flash, and walked back to his headquarters in deep thought….

9:39 pm

Raymond gently placed Galaxina on his bed, her long, light blue hair gently falling across his arms. Tails and Cosmo stood nearby, observing. Somehow, for some reason none of them could explain, she had managed to escape the Meterex as well, escaping in a pod like Cosmo. Except for the fact that she had landed a month later…

"How did she even survive without food or water?" Tails had asked Cosmo curiously. She thought hard, trying to remember when she herself was back in the pod…

"Well, there WERE some basic survival equipment actually…." Cosmo said as she vigilantly examined Galaxina. Raymond meanwhile placed one hand on her forehead, taking note of her temperature. For the past ten hours, they had been carefully examining her, making sure that she was fine…

Raymond smiled. "She seems to be alright. Just knocked out cold from the impact and suffering from loss of food and water for an extended period of time… She'll be alright, don't worry!" Raymond said encouragingly.

Cosmo smiled in reply. "That's great to know!" She looked down. "She's my sister, you know. When the Meterex attacked us, I thought I was the only person to have escaped, but I guess I was wrong…"

She started to cry. Tails noticed it, and hugged her, trying to comfort her.

"Shh… it's okay Cosmo. Don't be sad…" Tails desperately tried to cheer her up. Cosmo sniffed, and smiled.

"Don't worry, I'm not sad," Cosmo told Tails. "I'm crying because I'm just so happy… happy that I have you and now Galaxina here with me…"

Tails smiled. "Well, I'm glad that you're happy!" He hugged her again, and Cosmo hugged him back. Then, Tails yawned.

"Wow," Tails rubbed his eyes. "I'm pretty tired…"

Cosmo agreed. "It's almost 10, we should probably be heading to sleep…"

Then, Tails realized something. He had only 2 bedrooms, and he and Cosmo were going to sleep together in one while Galaxina was currently occupying the other.

"Where are YOU going to sleep, Raymond?" Tails asked.

Raymond shrugged. "Don't worry, I'll be fine." He motioned to the ground on the floor next to Galaxina. "I'll just sleep here, make sure she's alright."

Tails nodded. "Well, if you want…" he smiled. "Goodnight, Raymond.."

Tails sleepily walked out of the room. Cosmo was about to follow suit when she turned around and thanked Raymond.

"Thanks so much!" Cosmo said. "Thanks to you, Galaxina is alright and with me again!"

Raymond blushed. "Uhh.. no problem?" He grinned.

"Well, anyways, thanks for taking care of her!" Cosmo cheerfully replied, then followed Tails out of the room.

Raymond sighed, and lay down on the floor. He crossed both arms behind his head, and closed his eyes… falling into a deep and peaceful sleep…

Outside the room, Tails was thinking to himself nervously. He wanted so much for Cosmo to sleep with him, but he didn't know if she would like to…

"Um Cosmo?" Tails turned to her. She looked back at him, smiling sweetly.

"Yes Tails?" Cosmo replied.

Tails blushed. "Well.. uh… you know…." He scratched the back of his head again. "Where are you going to sleep?" Tails managed to sputter.

Cosmo blushed. "Well….." She looked down at the ground. "I was hoping that I could sleep with you, if you don't mind…." She looked back up at Tails sadly.

To her surprised, Tails grinned. "Of course you can sleep with me Cosmo! I was just about to ask you if you wanted to!"

"Really?" Cosmo gasped. Then she smirked. "That would be nice!" As Tails was about to reply, she gave him a swift kiss, giggling afterwards.

Tails blushed crimson, and walked over to the bed. As he yawned, Cosmo sat down next to him on the side. She hugged him, and the two of them plopped down on the bed together, sighing happily.

"You know I love you so much Cosmo…" Tails told her, smiling dreamily.

Cosmo giggled. "And you know I love YOU so much in return!" she pulled herself closer to Tails, cuddling with him. They lay back in bed, happy and together, dreaming of each other…


	5. Chapter 5

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 29

Tails was dreaming… or so he thought….

He was standing on the edge of a magnificent beach nearing sunset. It's soft, clean, white sand lay under his feet, the crystal clear aqua water sparkling in the sunlight. Behind him was a small forest, lush green palm trees bending in the slight breeze…

The whole place was picture perfect. It looked like it could have come from a screensaver off of one of his computers…

Tails lazily tilted back his head, closed his eyes, and inhaled the fresh island air, smiling as he did so. This place was perfect down to the last minute detail!

He started to daydream, caught in the essence of the moment. Nothing could have made this place better, except…

Tails perked one of his ears. Was there someone else on this island? He scratched his head, sure that he had heard something. Tails shook it off, and lay down on his back in the cool sand…

There it was again! Tails was sure of it! He sat up again, looking around curiously.

"Hello?" Tails called out to the forest. His voice echoed around the place, startling a few birds that were perched in the trees. Hearing no reply, Tails shrugged, and continued daydreaming…

Suddenly, the whole world went black as he felt a light pressure on his face. Startled, he yelped, only to find his mouth being covered by someone…

Tails slowly felt the hand that was covering his face, finding it to be soft and warm… He turned around.

"Cosmo?" Tails asked, surprised. There she was, sitting behind him, giggling. Her emerald green hair was lightly whipping past her face in the wind, barely covering her azure blue eyes, full of excitement and wonder…

"Hi Tails!" Cosmo squeaked, then glomped him in a tight hug. The scent of her hair and flowers on her head wafted by Tails' nose. He thought it smelt a bit like fresh strawberries and some other nice smelling perfumes…

They broke away, smiling at each other, pleasantly surprised to see each other in their dreams.

Tails leaned back, resting on his elbows. He took in the scenery, using all of his senses to examine and memorize every little detail. Then, he turned over to look at Cosmo.

"Hi Cosmo!" he finally replied after a while. Then Cosmo asked him, "Do you think we're having the same dream?" Cosmo sighed happily. "It's so perfect!"

Tails grinned. "Any place I'm at when I'm with you is perfect to me!"

"Awww… thanks Tails!" Cosmo sweetly replied, leaning to the side to rest her head on Tails' shoulder. Up ahead of them in the sky, the sun was nearing sunset, casting a brilliant array of orange, red, and purple. The clear water beneath reflected all of the colors, making the scene even more amazing. The whole island appeared to be pretty quiet, except for the both of them…

Cosmo suddenly stood up, smirking. "Wanna play tag, Tails?" she asked him politely.

He rolled over on his feet. "Sure! Do you want to be it, Cos—"

"TAG!" Cosmo ran off into the forest, giggling playfully.

Tails stood there for a second, then blinked. Then he grinned. "Oh, so that's how it's gonna be!" Tails ran after Cosmo, laughing as well.

The patter of their feet on the grass and their laughter was the only sound breaking the silence. Tails could see Cosmo up ahead through the greenery and vegetation of the forest, only several yards ahead of him. He grinned to himself, then put on an extra burst of speed, attempting to catch up with her. Finally, he was so close he could almost touch her! Just a few more feet!

Suddenly, Cosmo veered off to the left as Tails tried to dive for where she would have been in front of him only seconds ago. He yelped in pain as he tripped and landed hard on his arms. Cosmo was next to him in no time, bending over with a worried expression on her face.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay Tails?" Cosmo asked him, distressed. Tails was lying face down, not moving a muscle. Then, he started to shake, as if he was crying.

"Tails.." Cosmo bent over and hugged him. "I'm so sorry…" Tails rolled over to reveal that he was laughing. Then, he quickly leapt up, tagging Cosmo and landing on his feet.

"TAG, YOUR IT!" Tails sprinted in the other direction.

"Hey… wait a minute…" Cosmo said to herself. "That's not very nice Tails!" Cosmo called out, running after him.

As their fun continued, finally Tails managed to find himself on a tall, rocky ledge in an opening of the forest. 50 yards below was the same beach where they had come from. He rested his hands on his knees, panting heavily.

"I…*pant*… think I've lost her..*pant*" Tails said to himself. Back in the forest, watching Tails was Cosmo. She was hiding in a nearby bush, only 10 yards away.

"I don't think so, Tails.." Cosmo smirked to herself. Stealthily, she began to creep towards him from behind. Slowly…slowly….

"Gotcha!" Cosmo shouted in glee, reached out one hand, only to feel air. Tails had indeed noticed her hiding, and rolled away at the last second. With her forward momentum, Cosmo tried to stop herself from falling over the ledge… She desperately tried to grab on to anything, but there was nothing around her as she fell through the air….

"TAILS!" Cosmo screamed out. As she closed her eyes, the ground rushing up to meet her, she suddenly felt someone catch her. Carefully, Cosmo opened one eye, and looked up into the smiling, calm face of Tails.

"Don't worry, I got you!" Tails comforted her, his tails spinning behind him to keep both of them afloat. As Cosmo looked deeply into his aqua blue eyes while he stared into her azure ones, she felt… at peace…happy….in love…

Tails gently set her down back on the beach. "Are you okay Cosmo?" he asked her.

Cosmo smiled and nodded." Yep!" She wrapped both of them arms around his chest while Tails did the same around her waist. "Thanks to you!"

The two of them looked into each other's eyes, the sun finally setting behind them. As the sun gave its last brilliant glow of orange and purple, the two of them leaned towards each other, closing their eyes. Closer…closer… suddenly…

"TAG!" Cosmo giggled and ran off, leaving Tails standing there, expected to be kissed instead. He remained standing there, looking happily after Cosmo's fleeting figure, smiling…. At peace..

Slowly, he picked up his pace, running faster and faster, spinning both of his tails to increase his speed. Catching up to Cosmo, just 30 yards… 20….10….5….

Finally, Tails reached one of his hands out, and touched Cosmo on the shoulder. He and Cosmo both fell to the sand, giggling playfully with each other. He smiled to himself. Cosmo might be running away from him, but she was always within reach… All he had to do was stretch out his arms and embrace her…

Cosmo was here to stay. Tails finally felt at peace. He sighed happily. Nothing would happen to them now. They could enjoy the rest of their lives together, happy and in love with each other.

Forever and ever…


	6. Chapter 6

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 30

Tails' house

8:00 am

Shapes… Blurry images…. Sounds…..

Galaxina weakly groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. She didn't remember much about the past month of her life, just that somehow she was in a ship, escaping from something…

A red… something? Something was sitting to the right of her, watching her carefully with a lopsided smile on his face as she opened her eyes. As she then tried to get up, but fell back down on the bed in pain, he ran over to her side, concerned.

"Hey, are you okay? You're finally awake!" the red figure grinned.

"Uggh.." Galaxina turned to look at him. "Where…. Am I?" she slowly managed to ask.

"Mobius. Tails' house." The red figure replied, placing one hand carefully on her forehead. As she relaxed under his warm touch, he smiled at her.

"You seem to be alright! Tired?" he asked.

Galaxina wasn't paying attention. "Mobius? Tails? What's that?"

"Oh," the figure scratched his head. "Right, I forgot you aren't from here." He grinned. "Sorry, the planet we are currently standing on is called Mobius. My cousin is named Tails. This is his house. Better?" he grinned again.

"Oh..ok…" Galaxina tried to get up again, but failed.

"Hey, just lay back and rest." The figure smiled at her. "If you need anything just tell me and I'll get it for you!"

Galaxina smiled weakly back. "Thanks…"

"No problem!" the figure responded. He shook out one hand to shake. "I'm Raymond by the way, nice to meet you!"

"Oh.." Galaxina said. "I'm Galaxina…"

"Do you need anything? I mean are you thirsty or hungry?" Raymond asked her.

"No…" Galaxina smiled. "I'm fine… just tired is all…" She turned to look at him. "Sorry I hope you don't mind my asking, but what exactly are you?"

Raymond shrugged. "I'm fine."

"No, what I mean is what type of species are you?" Galaxina reworded her question.

"Oh." Raymond said. "Well, I'm some sort of fox I guess…"

"Fox?" Galaxina wrinkled her nose in curiosity. "I've never heard of that before.."

"Really?" Raymond was surprised. "Fox…. You know, a type of animal…"

"Wait," Galaxina frowned. "You're an animal?" Galaxina suddenly looked frightened.

Raymond looked down at his body, then turned back up to look at her. "Yep! 100 percent! Why, is something wrong?"

Suddenly, Galaxina turned away from him, covering herself with the blanket, shaking fearfully.

"Please…. Please don't hurt me…." Galaxina whimpered.

Raymond looked confused. "Hurt you? Why would I do that?" he scratched his forehead.

"Because… that's what animals do, don't they?" Galaxina tried to explain. "They hurt us plants, just like back where I came from…"

Raymond sighed, then held up both his hands in mock surrender. "Well, I'm pretty harmless… I think…" Galaxina still covered herself in the bed sheets.

Raymond sighed again, then placed one hand on her shoulder. Startled, she flinched in surprise.

"See?" Raymond said. He continued to comfort her by wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"No.." Galaxina managed to say. She turned back to look at him, tears running down her face.

"Where I came from, there were these animals that attacked us and killed us brutally. They killed all of my friends…." She looked down sadly.

Suddenly, Raymond hugged her, trying his best to make her feel better. He knew how it felt to lose someone… Emily…

Tears were now running both of their cheeks as they continued to comfort each other's pain and sadness, holding on to each other tightly…

Finally, they broke away, still crying.

"Better?" Raymond managed to ask.

Galaxina sniffed and smiled through her tears. "Yeah… better… thanks!"

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you!" Raymond consoled her. "In fact, I'll protect you from anyone that wants to harm you instead!"

Galaxina looked at Raymond warmly, smiling happily. "Thanks…" she hugged Raymond again, shutting her eyes closed.

"Wait a second," Raymond suddenly asked her. "Do you know Cosmo?"

Galaxina gasped in surprise. "Cosmo? Is she here?"

Raymond nodded. "Yeah, she and Tails went out about 10 minutes ago.."

"Tails?" Galaxina wondered. "Who's that?"

Raymond grinned. "He's another fox like me. Except he's a light Orangish-Yellow color." Raymond sat back in his seat that he had been observing Galaxina from while she slept. "Seems like you sister has fallen in love with him."

"Really?" Galaxina asked. Then, she smiled. "Aww.. that's so cute!"

Raymond grinned. "Well, you still haven't answered my question. Are you okay?"

Galaxina nodded. "Yep. I'm fine!" She sighed. "Just sad and a bit tired is all…"

"Well, I don't really want to overload you with questions and everything, so I'll let you sleep some more if you want…" Raymond then yawned, and lay back down on the wooden floor. "Good night then! Or rather, good morning!" Raymond shut his eyes closed.

Galaxina rolled over and peered over the side of the bed. "Isn't that uncomfortable?" She asked him, concerned.

Raymond opened one eye and grinned. "Nah, I'm fine." He assured her.

"Oh…" Galaxina said. She sighed, and asked him. "Well you know there' s a lot of space up here on the bed if you want…"

Raymond grinned again. "Thanks for your sympathy, but you really need the rest. Besides, I don't want to intrude or disturb you…"

Galaxina shook her head. "No, don't worry! You won't bother me!" Galaxina sighed again sadly. "I just feel bad that I'm lying comfortable in this bed while you're lying on the hard floor…" she looked sadly at Raymond. "Are you sure you don't want to?"

Raymond scratched the back of his head. "Well.."

"Please? At least won't you do it for my sake?" Galaxina looked at Raymond with puppy eyes, pleading.

Raymond sighed. "Well… if it makes you feel better.." He got up, then slid into the opposite side of the bed, crossing his arms behind his back, grinning at her. "Happy?"

"Yep!" Galaxina smiled happily. "Well, good morning then!" She shut both of her eyes, glad to get some more sleep.

Raymond turned to look at her. "Yeah… good morning…" He shut his eyes as well, slowly falling into a deep and peaceful sleep…


	7. Chapter 7

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 31

Mobius City

10:53 am

SLLURRP!

Tails licked the top of his ice-cream cone, Cosmo watching nearby in amusement eating her own ice-cream. The two of them were currently enjoying the morning in Mobius City, strolling down one of the many busy sidewalks. By them bustled a variety of different animals, each of them greeting or at least acknowledging Tails and Cosmo as they passed, since they were decently famous because they were friends of Sonic. But Tails and Cosmo didn't receive an incredible amount of attention, just a quick hello or good morning, which both of them preferred.

Tails was holding hands with Cosmo, quickly trying to finish the last of his ice-cream cone before it melted in the searing hot summer sun. As he desperately turned the ice-cream around and around, licking any drips that trailed down the side of the cone, Cosmo giggled. Tails turned to her, one eyebrow raised in mock amusement.

"What's so funny, Cosmo?" Tails casually asked her.

She giggled again and pointed at Tails' frantic attempts to eat his treat. "You are!" She comically replied, eating her own ice-cream.

Tails scratched his forehead. "I don't get what's so funny…"

Cosmo smirked. "Never mind…." As the two of them walked into a less crowded area of Mobius City, she turned to look through a couple of windows of stores that they were passing by.

"Ooh look!" Cosmo giggled. She pointed to a window where inside they were selling life-sized posters of everyone on the Sonic Team. Sonic (of course), Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and Cream were all there. Cosmo indicated the poster that had Tails' picture on it. In it, he was doing his usual grin and thumbs-up sign, the other hand holding his tails behind him.

"Aww.. you look so cute in that picture Tails!" Cosmo smiled.

Tails blushed. "Uhh…. Thanks?" He tried to grin, but failed, instead pulling off a lopsided smile which made Cosmo laugh. Tails blushed even harder, trying to hide his embarrassment by lowering his head and finishing his ice-cream which was a complete mess. He ended up smearing some across his face and lips without noticing. When he turned to look back up at Cosmo, she saw him and laughed even harder.

Tails, now fully embarrassed and humiliated, dropped his head down again. Cosmo, seeing this, immediately became sympathetic and stopped laughing, knowing that it made Tails feel bad.

"Are you okay Tails? I'm really sorry for hurting your feelings… It's just I find you to be funny and cute!" Cosmo smiled sadly at Tails. He raised his head in order to look at her and grinned.

"Hey it's no problem Cosmo! It's just I don't like it when people laugh at me… especially seeing you doing that hurts more…" Tails explained.

"Aww…" Cosmo hugged Tails and smiled sweetly. "Please forgive me Tails. I promise not to do it again!"

"Heh.." Tails blushed. "Don't worry Cosmo. I'll always forgive you!" He moved one hand to wipe the ice-cream off of his lips, but Cosmo stopped him.

"Huh?" Tails asked her, confused.

Suddenly Cosmo leaned forward, and kissed Tails, licking the ice-cream off of his lips. The feeling of Cosmo's lips pressed against his made Tails feel numb with surprise and pleasure, heat racing up and down his face and body. He relaxed as Cosmo continued to clean the ice-cream away. Finally, she broke off, smirking at Tails.

"Well… I hope that made it up to you." Cosmo slyly replied.

"Yeah….." Tails had a happy and dazed expression on his face, staring off into space. He shook his head as if to clear his mind. "Sorry…"

Cosmo giggled. "I love your reaction after whenever I kiss you."

Tails smiled and scratched the top of his head. "Well… I love YOU more!" He cunningly responded.

"Nuhuh… I love YOU more!" Cosmo countered, lovingly embracing Tails in a tight hug. Tails giggled and blushed.

"Um… Okay you win!" Tails replied. The two of them laughed as they continued walking peacefully through the city, holding hands, in love with each other.

"There's the post office, and to the left of it's the bank." Tails pointed out everything to Cosmo, who was intently listening.

"What's that over there?" Cosmo asked, indicating with her index finger.

"Oh, uh I believe that's the shopping mall. And there's the grocery store and then the Mayor's office." Tails continued to show Cosmo around, trying to get her familiar with the area. "Over on the other side of town is the bakery and pastry shop and then next to it is the mechanics store."

"Mhmm…" Cosmo nodded, trying to take everything in. Tails grinned.

"Sorry if I'm overloading you with information..." he apologized. Cosmo shook her head intently.

"No, it's alright. I should probably get used to this place seeing as I'm going to live here forever…" Cosmo sighed happily. "Doesn't that sound so great? That I can live with the fox of my dreams forever and ever…" Beside her, Tails blushed heavily.

"Well.. uhh.. I'm honored that you think of me that way…" Tails sheepishly smiled.

"And he's modest too!" Cosmo giggled, gently swinging Tails' hand that she was holding by her side.

"Well um…. Thanks!" Tails smiled at Cosmo, who in return gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Hey you didn't blush that time Tails!" Cosmo noticed amused.

"Uhh.. well I guess I'm 'getting used' to that kind of stuff now…" Tails tried to think of a witty comeback.

Cosmo smirked. "Oh ARE you now?" She smiled mischievously.

"…" Tails was about to reply when out of nowhere, Sonic came speeding up to them and greeted them.

"Hey guys! Tails! Cosmo!" Sonic cheerfully said.

"Hey Sonic! Whatcha been up to?" Tails coolly answered.

Sonic shrugged. "You know the usual: Finding out what Eggman's been up to, annoying Knuckles, running away from Amy…. That kinda stuff."

"Oh yeah!" Tails mentioned. "Haven't heard anything about Eggman yet for a while now. Do you think he's up to something?"

Sonic shrugged again. "Wouldn't be surprised. I'll bet he's plotting something this very instant… but on the meantime, what have you guys been up to lately?"

"Well… I was just spending the day with Cosmo, but we were planning to head back home soon." Tails responded.

Sonic nodded. "Alright!" He gave them a thumbs-up. "Well tell Raymond I said hi, gotta go!" Sonic sped off again through the busy crowd, weaving around milling citizens. Tails and Cosmo were left standing there…

"Do you think I should tell anyone about Galaxina yet?" Tails asked Cosmo, who shook her head.

"I think it's better if we let her rest and recover before we start introducing her to our friends…" Cosmo told Tails.

Tails nodded. "Yeah you're right..." He scratched his chin. "Do you think we should head home now and check on her? See if everything's alright?"

Cosmo smiled. "Okay!" She started to walk in the direction of Tails' home. "Let's g—woah!"

Suddenly from behind, Tails grabbed her bridal style and lifted her into the air, spinning his tails to keep them aloft. He smiled down at her surprised face.

"Thought it would be a bit faster this way.. Hold on!" Tails started to fly home, holding Cosmo. As they remained in the air, she looked up at him again, admiringly. Just like in the dream they had last night…

Except this time when Tails landed in the front of their house a few minutes later, she gave him a warm kiss.

"Thanks Tails!" she hugged him. "You didn't have to tire yourself out you know..."

Tails grinned. "Yeah I know. That's why I did it!"

"Aww.." Cosmo smiled at him lovingly, and kissed him again on the lips.

And they remained like that, locked together for what seemed like days, each in blissful happiness…


	8. Chapter 8

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 32

Tails' house

11:12 am

Tails swung open the front door of his house and let him and Cosmo inside…

"Raymond? Hellooo?" Tails called up the stairs.

Cosmo turned to him. "They're still probably sleeping… Better be quiet…"

The two of them carefully walked up the stairs, trying their best not to make a sound. Finally, as Tails reached the doorway of the room they were sleeping in, he looked in and smiled.

"Hey, wait a minute, wouldn't Galaxina still believe animals are all cruel because they attacked Greengate?" Tails asked Cosmo, slightly confused.

"Mhm.." Cosmo nodded. "Why?" She cautiously approached the room.

Tails smirked. "Well take a look for yourself…" He motioned inside the room. There, lying peacefully on the bed was Raymond and Galaxina. Except somehow, Galaxina had turned in her sleep and was now hugging Raymond from behind, nuzzling her face in his fur, with a happy and content smile on her face. Her light blue hair was gently falling across his dark red fur, covering one side of his face.

"Aww… That's so cute!" Cosmo smiled. Beside her, Tails grinned.

"Well they're a bunch of sleepy-heads! It's way past 11 in the morning!" Tails answered, amused that the two of them were sleeping together the way they were.

Finally, Raymond slowly opened one eye, hearing Tails and Cosmo talking outside. First seeing the two of them, he smiled sleepily and was about to stretch when he felt someone hugging him from behind. Surprised, he turned his head around to look into the peaceful face of Galaxina, her arms wrapped in an embrace around his body.

"Ummm…" Raymond blushed. He tried to extract himself, but moving a bit farther away from her prompted Galaxina to move closer to Raymond and hug him more tightly in her sleep. Tails and Cosmo giggled silently, watching.

"Uhhh…." Raymond blushed even harder. Again, he tried to move away in embarrassment, but Galaxina was holding him tightly so he couldn't escape. Raymond desperately looked at Tails and Cosmo.

"I'd appreciate it if you guys would stop standing around there laughing and try to help me out!" Raymond told them.

Cosmo giggled. "Awww…. You two are so cute together!" Tails nodded in agreement.

Frustrated, with no way of moving, Raymond gave up and lay back in bed with Galaxina still hugging him.

"Okay okay I guess I'll just stay like this…." Raymond sighed. He turned to look at Tails and Cosmo who were still watching the two with big smiles plastered on their faces.

"Looks like Galaxina really likes you!" Cosmo exclaimed. Suddenly Raymond thought about Emily. How would she feel….?

Raymond smirked. She was probably laughing at him too. He sighed and leaned back, crossing his arms behind his head. Beside him, Galaxina was still sleeping, gently snoring. Raymond turned to look at her. Her light blue hair, the delicate-looking flower with smooth white petals on the top of her head, her pretty face, the way she breathed in and out….

Raymond stopped and blinked. What was he thinking? Was he really just thinking that way?

Raymond shook his head to clear his mind and shrugged it off… It was probably just nothing…

Finally after a few silent minutes, Galaxina yawned and slowly opened her eyes. She then quickly stopped and realized she was snuggling with Raymond….

Startled, she hurriedly removed her arms and blushed very heavily, looking away when Raymond noticed she was awake.

"Sorry… I didn't mean to do that…." Galaxina apologized.

Raymond shrugged. "Nah it's okay… it's none of your fault."

Galaxina still looked away, embarrassed that she did something like that.

Raymond sighed and suddenly hugged her, nestling his face in her smooth, long hair.

"There, better?" Raymond asked her, smiling warmly.

Galaxina slowly turned around to face him smiling sadly. "Yeah… better…" She looked into Raymond's dark brown eyes intently…..

"Ahem…" Tails coughed lightly. He glanced at Raymond with a smirk on his face. "I guess we'll leave both of you two alone to do all the mushy romantic stuff, huh?" He looked at Raymond pointedly, grinning victoriously.

Both Raymond and Galaxina blushed, looked at each other, blushed even harder, and then swiftly looked away down at the ground.

"Ummm…." Raymond started.

"Uhhh….." Galaxina tried to say.

"Nah you don't have to tell me, I understand." Tails wittily replied, smiling to himself. "And I think that's Miles Prower '1', Raymond Prolle '0'… right?"

Raymond grinned back. "Well I guessed I kinda asked for that, huh?"

Meanwhile, Cosmo ran up to Galaxina and the two embraced.

"Galaxina! You're alive!" Cosmo exclaimed happily.

"Of course! And you're alive too!" Galaxina responded, tears of joy and happiness running down both of their faces.

The two of them broke away.

"But how did you survive, Cosmo?" Galaxina asked her first.

"Well after the Meterex attacked our ship, I managed to crash land here in Mobius. There, I met Tails and Sonic and their friends, and they helped me to defeat the Meterex!" Cosmo explained cheerfully.

"Really?" Galaxina exclaimed. "They're gone?"

Tails nodded positively. "Yep!" He turned to look at Cosmo, sighing sadly. "Though it wouldn't have been possible if Cosmo hadn't had to sacrifice her life…. And I had to shoot her…." Tails started to cry.

Galaxina, saddened by Tails' unhappiness, leaned over and hugged him, trying to comfort him.

"Shhh… that must have been hard for you to do…" Galaxina rocked him back and forth.

Tails gulped and continued to cry. "Y-yeah… t-the hardest t-thing I-I've ever h-had to d-do in m-my li-life…"

"Shhh…. Don't cry…. Anyways Cosmo's back here with you now, right?" Galaxina tried to make Tails feel better.

"Y-yeah…" Tails sniffed. "T-thanks to R-Raymond….H-he brought her back to life…." Tails wiped the tears off of his face. "S-Sorry… it's just that brings up so many bad memories that I tried to forget…." Tails smiled. "You're right, Cosmo is back here with me, and that's all that matters!"

As Galaxina released Tails, Cosmo in turn hugged Tails and rested her head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I had to make you do that Tails… I'm sorry it had to be so hard for you to do…" Cosmo wiped the tears off of Tails' face with her sleeve.

Tails smiled. "Don't worry Cosmo, that's all in the past now. You don't have anything to be sorry for, if it's anyone who should be sorry, it should be me for shooting you Cosmo."

Cosmo shook her head. "No, I told you to shoot me, remember? Even though you didn't want to…"

Tails sighed unhappily. "Yeah… I remember…." Tails then smiled again. "But like I said, that's all in the past. We just need to forgive ourselves and learn to live on…" Tails grinned. "Wow, thanks for making me feel better when I'm unhappy… that means a lot!"

Cosmo and Galaxina smiled. "No problem!" They replied in unison.

Then Cosmo turned to Galaxina. "How did you survive?"

Galaxina sighed, trying to remember. "Well, I remember also getting in an escape pod and running away when the Meterex attacked the ship. But then I really don't remember much…. I guess I just kind of blanked out…. Sorry…." Galaxina apologized.

"It's okay," Tails consoled her. Then, Galaxina smirked. "Soo… I heard from Raymond that you two love each other…?"

Tails nodded happily and wrapped one arm around Cosmo's shoulders. "Yep!" He turned to look at her, smiling. "She's the best thing that's ever happened to me! She makes me feel so happy and wonderful!"

Cosmo blushed, then turned to look at Tails, smiling in return. "And Tails is the best thing that ever happened to me! He makes me feel so special…." Cosmo trailed off, looking happily at Tails.

"Awww….." Galaxina replied. "So you two really love each other?"

"Yep!" Both of them responded in unison. Then, they turned to look at each other, giggling.

"No, I love YOU more!" Tails said.

"Nuhuh, I love YOU more than you love me!" Cosmo retorted, giggling.

The two of them playfully rolled on top of each other while Galaxina looked on, smiling warmly.

Raymond sat by, watching their conversation, not included, until Galaxina turned to him.

"What about you? Don't you want to explain about yourself?" she asked him politely, scooting closer to him.

Raymond shrugged and scratched the back of his head. "Well…. If you're really in the mood to be depressed….You see it all started back when…."


	9. Chapter 9

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 33

Tails' house

4:47 pm

…."And so you know the rest from there…." Raymond finished telling his story to Galaxina, who had tears running down her cheeks. Tails and Cosmo had already retired to the living room downstairs, since they had already heard the story before.

"Aww…" Galaxina quietly muttered, leaning over and hugging Raymond sympathetically. "I'm so sorry for your loss… Do you still miss her?"

"Yeah I do…" Raymond replied, depressed. He sniffed. "Well it's been a week or so, but I can't seem to imagine how I'm going to survive the rest of my life—"

"Shh... don't worry, I'll help you to feel better, I promise!" Galaxina responded optimistically. Raymond sighed.

"Thanks! That means a lot!" Raymond tried his best to sound happy, even though he was still hurting inside….

Meanwhile…

Tails and Cosmo were sitting on the living room couch, watching a couple of movies. Though, they weren't really interested in the movies as much as each other. Tails had one arm draped lazily around Cosmo's shoulders, holding her closely. Cosmo in return was nuzzling her head on Tails' shoulder. His soft fur tickled her delicate cheek, making her giggle whenever he turned his head slightly. After the movie they were watching was finished, Tails turned to look at his girlfriend, who was sleepily yawning.

"Tired, Cosmo?" He smirked.

Cosmo blinked her eyes a couple of times and tried to sit up straight. "No, not at all! Sorry for yawning…" Cosmo tried to stifle another yawn.

Tails chuckled. "You sure? It looks like you're pretty worn out…" He stopped as he noticed Cosmo closed her eyes shut, slowly nodding off into a deep and peaceful sleep…

Tails chuckled again, and leisurely lay down on the sofa, gently placing Cosmo's head on his chest. She giggled in her sleep as Tails' fur brushed against her face, and enfolded her arms around Tails' body. Tails smiled, and gently laid one hand on her back, while he used the other to delicately rub the back of her head, smoothing out her emerald green hair. Tails sighed happily as he too slowly shut his eyes… Nothing could be more perfect in his mind…

Blue Falls (small city 20 miles Northwest of Newark)

Panicking civilians ran everywhere through the hazy smoke and fires of the destroyed city, screaming. Sounds of rapid gunfire and impacts from artillery fire rumbled in the distance, as well as the clash of metal. In all the confusion of the fleeing animals, some of them tripped and fell and were trampled underfoot as the rest rushed to escape…

Outside the city walls in the outcroppings of the surrounding forest, Commander Flash smiled grimly, and turned to his soldiers nearby, all of who were waiting patiently in the bushes. He raised one hand, and brought it down, yelling "FIRE!"

One of the soldiers brought forward an evil-looking mechanized high-tech cannon, and pulled the trigger on the side of it.

BANG!

A rocket shot out of it, screaming and spiraling upwards towards Blue Falls, sparks coming out of the back. Several more followed in succession, all coming from out of the vegetation of the foliage.

One of the citizens heard a strange, high-pitched noise, and looked up. Out of nowhere, several rockets crashed into a house nearby. It immediately exploded, sending a shockwave that knocked people off their feet. The nearest houses caught on fire, abruptly tumbling down to the ground. Everywhere, people moaned, injured or seriously wounded…

Beside Flash, Juggernaut nodded, and turned to his own soldiers. He waited a few more seconds, before running out into the open towards Blue Falls and yelling "CHARGE!"

Tens of thousands of men from the other 4 Commander's squadrons all rushed out of the forest, screaming blood-thirstily in their increasingly trademark 'smash-mouth' style of attacking. Up on Blue Falls, a meager militia was assembled to try to stop the raging invaders. Only about 500 poorly equipped, inexperienced men against 70,000 battle-worn fighters…

The defenders at the top of the hill tried their best to ward off the incoming army by shooting down at them with their rifles, but it was just a desperate attempt. The soldiers eventually reached the top, and swarmed all over the defenders, killing everyone in their path…

A group of men hiding behind an over-turned cart in the city jumped out, guns in hand, and tried to fire at the invaders, but suddenly they were taken away from their hands. Surprised, they turned around to see a silver cat smirking behind them.

"Nice try…" Metal called out as she watched her own soldiers savagely kill them all…

In another part of the city, another small fighting force tried to shoot the invaders, but before they could fire, a strong force pushed all of them to the ground, and stalagmites rose from the ground, impaling them. Gravity and Juggernaut watched on nearby, nodding to each other, and then leaving to help in different parts of the falling city.

Civilians everywhere were being downed by needles flying everywhere or if they managed to dodge them, a toxic-like substance enveloped them, suffocating them…

Finally after only 10 minutes, the massacre was over. Blue Falls had been completely annihilated, the last city to fall to Malcolm's massive army. The dead were lying around everywhere, all scattered in various places. The few survivors were all taken and chained up to be taken back to Newark. Malcolm would decide to let them join his heavily increasing army or not. Finally, the whole planet had fallen to Malcolm's Empire. All that was left to do was finally complete the ships that were taking so long to build…

Back at Newark:

Malcolm sat at his desk, pleased. He had just received reports from a scout that Blue Falls had just recently fallen, and was now planning to bring all of his troops back in order to ready the campaign to go into space. By his side stood Luke and Garry, both of whom were leaning on the wall nonchalantly. They watched apathetically as Malcolm pulled out his phone and ordered his commanders to return home. So far while the other 6 had been out battling, Garry and Luke had been staying in the fortress, obviously because Malcolm was still furious at them for letting Raymond escape. But now Malcolm was letting both of them re-earn his trust by sending them off into space along with the rest…

Luke coughed politely to try and get Malcolm's attention. Irritated, Malcolm looked up at him.

"Yes?" Malcolm snapped sharply.

Luke grimaced. "Sorry sir, but I was wondering if I should go out and assist my fellow peers in any way possible…" Luke obviously just wanted to get out of the stuffy room he had been forced to stay in all day.

"Yeah yeah," Malcolm dismissed Luke with a wave of his hand. Luke saluted smartly, and briskly left the room. On the other side of the room, Garry whistled through his teeth and yawned. He was still seething about the fact how Raymond managed to beat him. If only he just got another chance, he'd be able to redeem himself and finally bring the traitor to justice…

"Garry?" Malcolm looked up at him. Garry saluted. "Yes sir?"

"I'm trusting you with an important job. You see, even though you let Raymond escape which I am still extremely unhappy about, I admire your ferociousness and burning rage to vanquish him. Rally the returning soldiers and give a speech to motivate them to join us into space instead of becoming lazy and complacent after all their victories. Tell them that we still have not finished our primary mission, and that is to eliminate Raymond. Am I clear?"

"Yes sir!" Garry nodded, and also briskly left the room. Malcolm smiled leaned back in his chair, clutching a few important documents. Soon…. Very soon he would find Raymond and kill him….


	10. Chapter 10

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 34

Tails' house

9:17 pm

It was a peaceful night at Tails' house. Inside the house, all the lights were turned off, rendering it pitch dark. It was completely quiet, except for the noise of crickets chirping in the background and the occasional owl hooting. Up above, a crescent moon shone brightly open the landscape, revealing dark green grass swaying in the lonely wind. Upstairs in the house, in one room, Tails and Cosmo were sleeping peacefully together. Tails was lying flat on his back, breathing gently in and out of his mouth, while Cosmo was lying on top of him, burying her face in his fur. The heat from both of their bodies gently flowed in and out of them into the other person, keeping both of them warm in the cool summer night. In the other room, Raymond was snoring tranquilly, his chest rising up and down slightly. Next to him was Galaxina, curled up, tucked up by his side. A content smile was etched on her facial features. Tails and Cosmo were obviously dreaming about each other, and Galaxina was dreaming about back home on Greengate. Raymond however was dreaming about something different…

He found himself to be sitting cross-legged in a quiet dim room, sunlight filtering through the only window. The entire room was bare, yet he felt as if it contained many things. Things that he couldn't see…

Suddenly, he felt a presence moving behind him. Startled, he sharply turned around to see…

"Emily!" Raymond leapt up and hugged her tightly. As he embraced her, crying, she smiled warmly and hugged him back. The two of them stayed like that for several minutes, but what to both of them felt like years. Raymond felt so safe and secure in her grasp. As if he could just hide from all the world's troubles in her embrace. But as always, he had to let go sooner or later…

"Emily…." Raymond sobbed. "Y-You're here…."

Emily smiled sadly, and reached out to Raymond's face, wiping a tear off of his muzzle.

"Yes, Raymond. I always will be like I said, right here…" She placed a hand on his heart again like last time. Except this time, Raymond didn't feel that same warm sensation. Just cold…numbness…

Raymond bent his head. "It's been a week now…. 7 days…. 168 hours….10,080 minutes….." Raymond looked up sorrowfully at Emily. "I know because I've been counting every moment I spend without you.."

"Aww…." Emily grabbed Raymond again and nestled her face in his tear-stained shoulder. "Please don't cry… I don't like seeing you so unhappy…." She glanced back up at him. "Are you happy with your decision though? Do you have any regrets?"

Raymond, still crying silently, shook his head. "No… no I don't. I love seeing Tails and Cosmo happy together, they really deserve to be together. They saved the universe, and sacrificed everything in order to do so…They gave everything up so selflessly for the sake of other people… I on the other hand don't deserve you… I failed to protect the one thing that matter most to me…. I guess I deserve all this now, to be without you…. YOU deserve better than me…" Raymond stepped back and held out his arms, head hanging.

Emily sighed sadly. "Please don't talk that way Raymond. Of course you deserve me! Think about everything you've done for me! Remember, you told me all you ever wanted is to make me happy right?"

"Yeah…. I remember…." Raymond said dejectedly.

"Well I can't think of anyone else that would care so much about me!" Emily replied kindheartedly.

"But still…" Raymond started to say.

Emily put her hands on her hips. "AND it WOULD make me happy if YOU could cheer up..." She smirked, tilting her head questioningly to the side.

Raymond sniffed and wiped the tears from his eyes, managing a small smile. "Sorry… I'll try my best…to be happy…"

Emily softened her expression, stepped forward, and hugged Raymond tightly again. "Of course you deserve me…. You've done so much for me… and you also love me so much that you would do anything for me…"

"B-But it was because I couldn't stop them that you were killed…" Raymond tried to explain. Emily sighed forlornly again and shook her head.

"And that's where you're wrong, Raymond." She smiled at him. "I chose to give up my life for you, remember?"

"But if I had only killed them so you didn't have to do that…. If only…." Raymond said miserably. "I should have been the one to die. I had my chance and failed. You on the other hand did nothing wrong in your life, you were perfectly innocent. And yet YOU died. Why?"

"Because I chose to give it up for you…" Emily explained.

"But why?"

"Because…" Emily looked up at Raymond, and in one fluid motion, made herself taller by standing on her tip-toes, wrapped an arm around the back of Raymond's head, pulling his head down, and kissed him right on the lips…

"Because I love you, that's why…." She said tenderly as they broke away.

"So do I!" Raymond exclaimed. "I would have given MY life up for you without any hesitation. You deserve it more than me!"

"Shhh…." Emily put one of her fingers to his lips, shushing him. Then, she smiled lovingly at him. "And that's the reason of why I'm so glad that I gave up my life… Because in return, I was able to save such a decent, noble, and caring person… Please don't feel sad or hurt. I hate seeing you, the person I love SO much still, in pain about me…"

"Of course I'm still going to feel sad without you! I love you so much too! And now you're not here with me. It's like a part of me died too when you died that night… There's an empty hole in my heart that I just can't fix or fill…" Raymond started to cry again. "S-Sorry if I'm crying too much… I'm such a wimp..." Raymond sniffed.

"Aww…." Emily caressed his cheek with the back of her hand. "Please don't say mean stuff about yourself either. You're a good person, Raymond, you know it deep down inside of you. And even if you keep denying it, know that I'LL always think you're the best person ever in the whole wide world!" Emily opened her arms wide and tilted her head back to emphasize her point.

"T-Thanks…" Raymond said desolately. He smiled through his tears. "I-I'm glad that I have someone that still cares so much about me…"

Emily giggled and smiled kindly. "No problem! All I EVER want is to also make you happy too!"

"Thanks…." Raymond replied, smiling back. Emily giggled again. "Well looks like I'm succeeding so far!"

Raymond grinned, but then turned downcast again. "But I don't know… how am I going to survive the rest of my life without you? Or a year? Or even another day?"

Emily sighed despondently, but then smiled. "I believe in you Raymond. Even when no one else does, or when even YOU give up on yourself, I'll always be there, by your side, cheering for you…"

"Thanks Emily… It's just that you really mean a lot to me! And I don't know if I can hold on any longer not having you around with me…"

"Aww… thanks!" Emily smiled. "I know it's tough, Raymond. I know you want me back, and so do I! I want so much to be reunited with you too! But if that can't happen, I'll still be happy because I know that you're still down there, still living life out to its fullest!"

"What about you though?" Raymond asked her.

"Don't worry about me, Raymond! I'm fine, in heaven, in a perfect place without anymore fighting or evil. It's YOU that I'm always worried about… your pain… your loss… they hurt me too. So please could you for my sake try your best to cheer up?"

Raymond grinned back. "Of course! Of course I'll try my best if it makes you happy!" He didn't feel half bad anymore. Raymond just had to keep reminding himself that Emily was fine now, perfectly okay. She wasn't dead-gone, but instead still living inside of him, in his heart. She was still there….. still there….. he just had to search deeply for her….


	11. Chapter 11

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 35

Tails' house

8:47 am

"Raymond….. RAYMOND….." Raymond groaned and slowly opened his eyes. Tails was leaning over his bed, smirking. "Wake up…."

Raymond sat up in bed, slouching his head over. "Aww… I was having such a good dream…." Raymond sighed dejectedly, rubbing his eyes and yawning drowsily. "Ah well….."

"Sorry," Tails apologized.

Raymond smiled back. "Nah it's okay, Tails." Raymond stretched his arms and yawned hugely again.

Tails laughed. "Well Cosmo and Galaxina are already downstairs eating breakfast. They got the idea that we should all go out into the city again to spend with each other. Well actually, first they wanted to spend time with each other because, well you know, they're sisters and haven't seen each other in a long time. And then Cosmo wanted me to tag along. And then we all decided that if you wanted to come, you could since we didn't want you to feel left out…"

"Really..." Raymond shook his head to clear his mind from all the information overload. "Sorry if I kept you guys waiting…."

Tails laughed again. "No you're alright. We just woke up a few minutes ago, so you aren't late or anything…."

Raymond grinned. "Glad to hear that!" He jumped out of bed, full of energy, rejuvenated from last night's dream. "Alright well I'm ready!"

Tails giggled. "You just woke up!" he pointed out.

"So?" Raymond smirked. He furiously brushed the top of his head to make sure any of his hair wasn't sticking up. "I just don't like to keep people waiting…."

"I told you, you're not holding us up, so don't worry." Tails explained. Raymond shrugged.

"Whatever, I'm alright. Let's go!" Raymond good-naturedly tried to push past Tails, who in return tenaciously blocked his route, and sped down the stairs, laughing.

Cosmo and Galaxina were avidly talking to each other over a breakfast of pancakes with syrup when Tails rushed to the doorway, grinning. Raymond followed closely behind, putting on a serious face and doing a mock salute to Cosmo and Galaxina. Cosmo and Galaxina stopped talking when they noticed the two, and stared at them, unknowingly with their mouths open. Tails burst out in laughter while Raymond grinned.

"Haha your guys' expression was priceless!" Tails doubled over, clutching his stomach. Galaxina smiled wryly.

"Haha very funny…" she replied sarcastically. Beside her, Cosmo just smiled and giggled.

Tails managed to compose himself. "Sorry Galaxina… "Tails turned to Raymond. "And I think that's Miles Prower '2', Raymond Prolle '0'!"

"Huh?" Raymond scratched the back of his head. "I wasn't aware that we were doing any type of competition…" Then he shrugged and grinned. "Whatever..."

"Come on guys!" Tails energetically responded. "Let's go!"

"Someone's really excited…" Galaxina smirked.

Tails just grinned. "Sorry… it's just that I'm so happy that I have Cosmo and now you around!"

"Hey! What about me!" Raymond exclaimed in mock despair.

"Aww… don't worry we won't forget about you!" Galaxina assured him. Raymond smiled cheerfully back at her, but then faltered.

"Why do I always feel weird around her…Is it because I…." Raymond kept asking himself. He shrugged it off. "Nah it's probably just because I want to make her feel welcome and everything, nothing else…."

Meanwhile Tails and Cosmo were giggling good-naturedly with each other.

"Your expression was pretty funny too!" Tails exclaimed to Cosmo, laughing uncontrollably.

Cosmo smirked. "Glad you think so," As she was busy talking, Tails reached over, grabbed the rest of her breakfast, and gulped it down.

"There! You're done! Let's go now!" Tails cheered enthusiastically while Cosmo giggled in amusement. The two of them rushed out the door, chasing after one another playfully. Back in the house, Raymond scratched his head and turned to Galaxina.

"Never seen so much enthusiasm at one time in my entire life," He commented dryly, smirking. Galaxina laughed, and finished up her breakfast as well.

"Well in my opinion I think it's so cute to watch the two of them together, don't you think!" She smiled warmly. Raymond grinned back.

"Sure! I guess we should follow them, huh?" He stood up from the chair he was sitting on. "Come on, let's go too!" He said challengingly. The two of them dashed outside after Tails and Cosmo, eager to see what would await them this day…

The four of them walked to the city, chattering amongst themselves. Tails and Cosmo were in the lead, excitedly telling Galaxina about all the cool places in Mobius City that they should go visit. Raymond was in the rear, crossing his arms and walking along peacefully, thinking to himself.

"Ooh we should go to the shopping mall!" Cosmo exclaimed to Galaxina, who was smiling good naturedly.

"Sounds like fun!" Galaxina replied cheerfully. Tails meanwhile made a disgusted face.

"Bleh… shopping's too boring. Let's do something else funner instead!" Tails grinned.

"Funner? Is that even a word?" Galaxina smirked. Tails shrugged. "You know what I mean…"

They passed by a variety of stores while walking alongside the sidewalk. Since it was early in the morning, it was nice and cool outside, and there weren't that much people crowding the area. A few white clouds in the sky dotted the clear blue sky, and the sun reflected its rays off of the surrounding windows of tall office buildings. The smell of freshly baked bread and pastry wafted by as the four of them continued their trek. Smiling, Tails turned to Cosmo.

"Beautiful day isn't it?" He casually said. Cosmo smiled back and nodded.

"Yes, it is!" Cosmo sighed happily. "I just love being outdoors…"

Tails grinned, and gave a lopsided smile. "I'll make sure to spend more time with you outdoors then!" He replied.

Cosmo giggled, covering her mouth with one hand. "Spending time with you anywhere is fine with me!" She told Tails sweetly.

Tails blushed, and scratched behind his ears with his free hand. "Well… but doing it where you want to the most makes it 'more' fine!" He smirked.

"You don't have to do all that for me…" Cosmo replied softly.

"I want to though! I love seeing you happy, and I want you to be the happiest you can ever possibly be!" Tails delightfully told Cosmo. She smiled back blissfully.

"Aww… thanks!" Cosmo happily pecked Tails on the cheek, who blushed heavily. "You're the most kind-hearted person I've ever met or known…"

"Umm…. Heh no problem Cosmo!" Tails assured her as she hugged him from the side.

A few steps behind, Galaxina turned to Raymond, smiling merrily.

"See! Aren't they so cute together!" Galaxina giggled when she saw Tails nearly tip over when Cosmo kissed him again. Galaxina sighed warmly. "I'm so happy for them…"

Raymond smiled back and nodded.

"Well I'm glad you're happy!" He said cheerfully. Galaxina laughed.

"And I'm glad you are too! Or are you enjoying yourself, you seem pretty quiet…"

Raymond shook his head. "Nah, just thinking about stuff." He managed a small smile.

"Oh… right… sorry…" Galaxina replied sorrowfully. "Is it about….. her?"

Raymond nodded slowly. "Yep, but you don't have to feel sorry. Don't worry, I'm okay!" He grinned.

"Mhm…" Galaxina stayed silent for a few minutes as the group of them continued walking towards the middle of the city. "Well if you have anything you want to talk about or you just need a shoulder to cry on, I'll always be here for you!"

"Thanks, I really appreciate it!" Raymond smiled at her warmly. She smiled back as the two looked closely into each other's eyes for a few moments. As the moment faded away, he thought to himself…

No, he didn't have any regrets about his decision. Not at all…


	12. Chapter 12

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 36

Mobius City

9:33 am

Cosmo and Galaxina were eagerly looking around in the shopping mall at all the clothing, chatting with each other about what to get and wear, while Tails slowly dragged behind them.

"Shopping…. is…. so….boring…." Tails complained, groaning. He tiredly but quickly glanced at all the clothes surrounding him. "Aarrrggh…." He moaned, trying his best to make Galaxina and Cosmo have sympathy on him. Raymond and Galaxina had thought it was a good idea to try and get new clothes for herself and Cosmo since they only had their own trademark dresses with them, and Tails knew that it too. But that didn't change the fact that he STILL thought it was boring…

Cosmo meanwhile was pulling out various shirts and blouses from a rack, holding them in front of her in front of a large mirror in the middle of the department store. "What about this one, Galaxina?" She indicated towards a greenish summer-style shirt that had pictures of flowers all over it.

"Ooh that looks pretty Cosmo!" Galaxina complemented, then she smirked. "I'm sure Tails would LOVE it…"

Cosmo blushed. "Umm…" Galaxina laughed. "You should get it, really!" She then turned around to see Tails staggering past them, pretending to choke and die.

"Oh come on Tails," Galaxina giggled, very much amused by Tails' antics. She was in the process of sorting through another rack of clothing. "I promise I won't take much longer…"

Tails snorted. "You said that TEN MINUTES ago…" He pointed out, annoyed. Cosmo on the other hand looked up from what she was doing. She frowned, concerned. "I hope we're not making you unhappy by taking a long time Tails… If we are, then I'm terribly sorry…"

Tails sighed dejectedly. "Nah, it's okay Cosmo. You can take as long as you'd like! I'll just go check on what Raymond's up too..." Tails turned around and sped out the door, very much glad to be out of that place. Galaxina shrugged, and turned to Cosmo.

"Boys… you know how they are," She joked, making Cosmo giggle in return.

"I still love Tails the exact way he is though," Cosmo sighed thoughtfully. "I won't want him to ever change!"

Galaxina just smiled, in the middle of putting away another pair of shirts. "I'm happy for you two then!"

Meanwhile…

Raymond was lazily humming to himself, strolling around the mall with a smile on his face. He had just come back from one place in particular, and was carrying a small package in his hands…

"Whatcha doing Raymond?" Tails suddenly jumped out of nowhere, startling Raymond.

"Uhhh…. N-Nothing…..?" Raymond stuttered. He hid the small box behind his back. "I-I'm not doing anything…"

Tails smirked. "Oh really? Whatcha got there?" Tails pointed behind Raymond's back.

"N-Nothing…." Raymond spun around as Tails tried to see what he was holding.

"Oh come on Raymond! Tell me!" Tails asked. Then, he smirked. "Wait a minute… Is that for Galaxina…?"

Raymond blushed. "Uhhh…. No…..?"

"Ooh…" Tails laughed. "What did you get for her?" He tried again to grab the box out of Raymond's hands.

"N-Nothing!" Raymond slapped himself in the face. "I-I mean not like I DID get anything for her…"

Tails grinned. "Riiiight… So tell me? What is it? Is it a ring?"

"I told you I didn't get anything for her!" Raymond desperately tried to keep the box out of Tails' reach.

"Is it a necklace? Am I getting hotter or colder?"

"N-No…"

"Then how come you're trying to hide it from me?" As Raymond held the box over his head, Tails jumped with one hand outstretched. It collided with the box, sending it flying out of Raymond's hands. It spun around and around in the air, until it landed into the crowd of people nearby. Raymond and Tails looked at each other.

"Oh no you're not…" Raymond started.

"Oh yes I am!" Tails laughed playfully and the two of them pushed past each other and raced to grab the box before the other did.

Raymond could see the box right in front of him only a few yards away. He pushed past a couple of people, and dove for the box. He was just about to grab it when a person accidentally kicked it, and it went sliding further down the floor.

"Oh crap…" Raymond hurried back up to his feet and started off in a sprint towards the box. Tails meanwhile was flying over the crowd using his two tails to propel himself. He sped past Raymond, and flew down low to the ground. He snatched up the box right in front of Raymond's horrified eyes, and crowed victoriously.

"Hey! No fair you can fly!" Raymond called out, seeing Tails' fleeting figure race off. Tails meanwhile was looking back over his shoulder at Raymond.

"Looks like I win!" Tails replied, and turned back around just in time to see a pillar racing towards him. He yelped and leapt out of the way, but in the process, dropped the box. It went flying through the air, and fell onto the escalator. Due to its forward momentum, it kept tumbling down and down the stairs. Raymond, seeing that he had hope again, leapt over the side of the railway and jumped down to the escalator, landing in a crouched position. He spotted the box lying at the bottom, and ran down the escalator. Unfortunately, the escalator was moving upwards while Raymond was trying to run downwards.

"Wow I must look really stupid…" Raymond thought to himself as he slowly maneuvered down the escalator. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Tails flying towards him. Raymond grinned, and finally reached the bottom at the same time Tails reached there too. Raymond was just about to dive for the box again when Tails suddenly and instinctively raised a hand and a gust of wind flew out, and sent the box flying once more.

"Wha… did I just do that….?" Tails thought to himself, looking curiously at his own hand. His thoughts were interrupted however when he heard the sound of Raymond's shoes pattering on the hardwood floor. Tails ran off in a dead sprint after Raymond, who had almost caught up with the box.

"Come on… Come on…." Raymond muttered to himself as he tried to get past the group of milling animals. He saw the box being kicked again and again, sending it farther and farther away from him. "Come on people, look where you're stepping already!"

Raymond cursed again as he saw the box being kicked once more away from him. "Sorry… pardon me…. Excuse me…. " Raymond apologized as he brushed past people. He heard Tails' footsteps not too far away behind him, and in response hurried up his pace.

Animals ambling around nearby stared at the two foxes that were running through the mall, apparently as if they were chasing something. Raymond turned around and called back to Tails.

"Hey, don't you think we should stop before we make a scene…?"

Tails shrugged and shook his head. "Nah… Scared that I'll see what's in there, huh Raymond?"

"You'll have to get through me first!" Raymond called out challengingly. He spied the box only several feet away.

"Aha! Got it!" Raymond dove for it, and ALMOST grabbed it, but he failed to secure it tightly in his hands and it went sliding a few feet forwards. Raymond shut his eyes closed in despair when he realized who was standing just right in front of him.

"Umm… what are you doing Raymond?" Galaxina curiously asked Raymond, staring at his figure that was lying flat on the floor in front of her. She and Cosmo were both carrying a few bags of clothes.

Tails landed nearby the trio, grinning victoriously. "Well, open the box and you'll see!"

Galaxina bent over, and pick up the mysterious box in her hands. "What's this Raymond?"

"Uhh…." Raymond slowly stood up and brushed himself off. He knew that his life was just about all over…

"N-Nothing…" Raymond managed to stutter. Tails grinned.

"It's something Raymond got for you Galaxina! Except he was too embarrassed to tell me what it was…"

Galaxina blushed. "Really? Is that true Raymond?"

"Uhh…." Raymond blushed heavily looked down at his feet and kicked the ground beneath himself. "Maaaaybe.."

Tails smirked. "Well why don't you open it and find out?" he told Galaxina, who set down her shopping bags and carefully undid the lacing around the top. She then tore off the wrapping paper, and lifted the cover…

Galaxina gasped. "Oh my gosh! Is this really for me?" She lifted out a stunningly beautiful ring. It was a solid band of pure gold. A large, pink jewel rested on the top of it, adorned by criss-crossing rubies and sapphires.

"Isn't this the same exact ring you were going to give Emily?" Galaxina asked Raymond in surprise.

Raymond managed a small smile and nodded. "Yeah… it's not the SAME exact one, but it's pretty close. I found it in the window of the jewelry shop upstairs, and I want you to have it…"

Galaxina slowly shook her head. "No… no… I can't accept this from you…." She handed the ring back to Raymond. "Please… you really don't have to give me this…"

Raymond shook his head and grabbed Galaxina's left hand. He placed the ring on her finger, and smiled gently at her. "Nah, it's okay. I WANT to give it to you!"

Galaxina ran over and gave Raymond a big hug. Tears trickles down her face as she rested her face on Raymond's shoulder.

"Why are you crying, Galaxina?" Raymond asked her, his face full of worry and concern. She looked back up at him, smiling through her tears.

"Because I'm just so happy… happy that I have someone that cares a lot about ME too…"

Raymond grinned. "You're very welcome…" He held her close to himself. Some animals around the four of them were staring at them, but Raymond didn't care… He didn't care at all…

Cosmo stood next to Tails, an arm wrapped around his waist.

"Aww…" She softly whispered under her breath. Tails meanwhile made a face.

"Blecckk! Not in public guys!" Tails called towards Raymond and Galaxina, waving his arms frantically. "Come o-ffff!"

Tails was interrupted by Cosmo suddenly turning to him and kissing him on the lips. As they broke away, Cosmo giggled.

"You didn't complain when I kissed you in public, Tails…" Cosmo pointed out, amused. Tails blushed.

"Uhhh…" He tried to think of a comeback, but when he couldn't, he just shrugged and smiled. "You can kiss me whenever and I won't complain Cosmo!" Tails responded cheerfully, making Cosmo giggle again.

Raymond smiled and thought to himself, Galaxina still hugging him.

Nope… No regrets… No regrets at all…


	13. Chapter 13

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 37

Location Unknown…

A single light bulb flickered randomly overhead in a dimly lit room, giving brief glimpses of the interior before plunging it into darkness. Large computers and other high-tech machines were jumbled around the place on top of multiple desks and tables. Scrap pieces of paper with sketches or writing on them were found crumpled up on the floor. In the front of the room, a screen projector was displaying images of E-101, Raymond, and Knuckle's battle a few days earlier. As the battle scenes played over and over, Eggman and his two robots watched on in silence.

Finally after the battle ended and the projector died out with a whirr, shutting off, Bocoe threw up his hands in the air and sighed. "Why can't we EVER beat them?" He whined, complaining. Bocoe leaned forwards on the tabletop and rested his head in one of his hands, a crestfallen look on his face. Next to him on the other side of Eggman, Docoe shrugged.

"They ALWAYS manage to foil our plans…" Docoe trailed off unhappily. "What do you think, Boss?"

Eggman was still staring at the blank projector screen, remaining silent. Then, he his mouth contorted into a wide smile, and he began to laugh, harder and harder until he was cackling maniacally.

"Hohoho!" The sunglasses on his face glinted in the dim light as he turned around in his chair to look at Bocoe and Docoe. "Do you REALLY think I can be defeated THAT easily?"

"Huh?" Bocoe scratched his head. "What do you mean?"

"Hehehe…" Eggman snickered, smirking. "Those fools underestimate my genius…"

"What are you talking about, Boss?" Docoe asked in confusion.

Eggman just threw back his head and laughed again. "True, they did manage to defeat E-101. But in fact that was my whole purpose…" He swiveled around in his chair, clasping his hands, intertwining his fingers together. "I was the first to spy that red fox's arrival on this planet. And when he teamed up with Sonic and company, I just had to test his skills. I must say, I was quite impressed. I used E-101 to track his powers, recording and filming them. And using the powers of science and genetics, I tested a couple of things in my lab, finding more and more about him. And now that I know much more, I'll be better equipped when I begin my MASTER PLAN!"

"Good going, Boss!" Bocoe and Docoe cheered and jumped in excitement. Eggman grinned smugly again.

"Too long I've waited, being defeated time and time again by Sonic and his friends. But not anymore… I've spent every single battle, observing, watching, taking notes on each of their powers. And now I plan to use it to my full advantage! I'll unleash my fury! And no one will be able to stop me! Not even the 'great' Sonic the hedgehog! I'll finally be able to build the EGGMAN EMPIRE!"

A dark colored robot flew into the room just at that moment, interrupting his tirade. "Boss, boss!" Bokkun shouted as he nearly crashed into a nearby desk. He picked himself up, and stood on top of it, putting his hands on his hips.

"I've done what you've said! Everything is all ready to go!" Bokkun informed Eggman, who smiled and sat back in his chair.

"Peeerfect! Now all we have to do is wait for that accursed blue hedgehog to find that message…" Eggman shut off the projector as the room was thrown into complete darkness…

(At Tails' house)

Tails and Raymond was in the workshop, in the process of working on Tails' new plane. Cosmo and Galaxina were sitting nearby on a bench, talking to each other, while watching the two foxes at the same time. Tails was standing on a large stool, using a wrench to fix something under the cockpit of the airplane. Meanwhile, Raymond stood patiently nearby, crossing his arms. After toying with some wires and bolts for a few minutes, Tails turned to Raymond and spoke up.

"Okay, I think it's ready now!" Tails took out a thin sheet of metal and placed it so as to cover the wires. Raymond in return flashed a grin and a thumbs up.

"Alright! You might want to move out of the way…" Tails hopped off of the stool, landing on the ground deftly, while Raymond took his spot. He positioned one hand underneath the cockpit, and a stream of fire burst out, welding the pieces of metal together. When he was finished, the flames died away, leaving the metal pieces completely stuck together, all smoothed out.

"That looks great Raymond! It's also much easier than when I have to use a flamethrower…" Tails complemented.

"Glad that I can help!" Raymond responded cheerfully. He too hopped off of the stool, and walked over to Tails, who was sitting next to Cosmo on a nearby bench.

"So, what do you think of it?" Tails curiously asked Cosmo.

"It looks amazing Tails!" Cosmo giggled. "Everything you build does!" She sweetly replied.

"Aww… thanks!" Tails blushed and grinned cheerfully and scratched the back of his head. He then turned to Raymond.

"Well, what do you think? How much longer do you think it'll take at this rate?"

Raymond shrugged. "Well, I'd estimate a few more days… We just need to finish the tail and add on the weapons, right?"

Tails nodded. "Mhmm…" He grinned. "Well and then we need to run a couple of tests before I'm absolutely certain that this plane is safe and ready for action!" Tails yawned, and stretched his arms. "Though building sure is pretty tiring after a long while…"

"Yeah…" Raymond agreed. "Why don't we go inside and take a short break? It's not like we need to finish this in a hurry or anything…"

Tails nodded. "Sure! That sounds good too! Come on guys!" He opened the door that connected his workshop to the back of his house, holding it so that Cosmo and Galaxina could pass through.

"Thanks Tails!" Cosmo kindly thanked Tails, who blushed slightly.

"Hehe… no problem!" He smiled back at her. The four of them entered the house, right when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" Tails said, but Raymond was already at the door. He opened it to reveal Sonic, panting on the doorstep. He wore a concerned and worried expression on his face.

"What is it, Sonic?" Tails asked him, his expression now serious. Sonic caught his breath, and then spoke up.

"Eggman..*pant*… he left a message saying that he tracked one of the chaos emeralds nearby.." Sonic breathlessly explained.

"Hmm…" Tails thought for a minute. "Why would he tell us when he found a chaos emerald instead of getting it for himself?"

"Because he claims that it's being guarded by something powerful that managed to defeat him. Eggman says that he wants us to take a crack at it…" Sonic replied.

Tails processed this information. "But wh—"

"It's not like he's giving this to us for free you know. He wants us to send a group of 3 people so that when we team up with Eggman and defeat the monster or whatever, that we'll have an equal chance of retrieving the emerald." Sonic told them.

"How do we know that Eggman isn't going to try to take the chaos emerald while we're busy being distracted?" Tails asked. Sonic shrugged.

"Well, we'll just have to keep a closer eye on him then, right?" Sonic grinned.

"Umm…" Raymond spoke up. "So I take it we're going treasure hunting then? I mean, what IS a chaos emerald?"

"Oh," Sonic started. "It's like the Master Emerald, except that it's much smaller in size and power. There are seven of them somewhere in this world, but we lost them after battling the Meterex, so they all scattered to different places…"

"Okay…" Raymond trailed off in thought.

"Eggman specifically said only three people could go, right?" Tails asked Sonic, who nodded.

"Well, there's you, me, Raymond, Knuckles, Amy, and Cream, so we can only take along half, right?" Tails asked again, but this time Sonic shook his head.

"No, I'd thought it best if Amy or Cream didn't come, so out of us three and Knuckles, we need to leave one person behind…" Sonic told Tails and Raymond.

"Why?" Tails wondered out loud.

"Because I'm guessing that if something can stop Eggman from getting his hands on an emerald, it must be pretty powerful. So that makes it pretty dangerous as well…"

"Sure you're not just making Amy stay home because you secretly love her and want her to be safe, but are just too embarrassed to admit it?" Tails smirked.

Sonic was about to retaliate when Raymond cut in. "Come on guys, we don't have much time to waste! Let's figure out who's going!"

"Sure… Where is Knuckles by the way?" Tails wondered. Suddenly, a red echidna stepped out from behind a nearby tree in the front yard, crossing his arms.

"I'm right here… I was there when Sonic and I got the message from Bokkun, and both of us ran here to tell you guys…" Knuckles explained.

"Okay, let's do rock-paper-scissors then to determine who's going then!" Tails replied challengingly, but he was stopped by Cosmo, who put one hand on his shoulder.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Tails? It sounds pretty dangerous…" Cosmo asked Tails, worried.

Tails shrugged, then smiled back at Cosmo comfortingly. "Don't worry about me Cosmo! I'll be alright, I promise!"

"Okay guys, let's hurry up already!" Sonic interrupted, as the four of them formed a circle.

"ROCK-PAPER-SCISSOR-SHOOT!" Tails and Raymond drew paper while Sonic and Knuckles both drew scissor.

"Aha!" Sonic and Knuckles gave each other high-fives while Tails and Raymond looked at each other dejectedly.

"It's just between you and me now," Tails muttered, one hand raised.

"No hard feelings, right?" Raymond replied, raising his hand.

"ROCK-PAPER-SCISSOR-SHOOT!" Tails drew scissor while Raymond drew rock. He was about to congratulate himself, when he noticed Tails looking down.

"You alright Tails? You can go in place of me if you want…" Raymond told Tails.

"Nah, it's okay, I'd rather stay with Cosmo and Galaxina anyways…" Tails trailed off, managing a small smile.

"Are you sure? I mean-"

"No really, I'm okay! It's just that it would have been nice to go on another adventure…" Tails replied. Raymond shrugged.

"Alright, take care guys…" He told Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina. He flashed a thumbs up and grinned.

"Take care!" Cosmo called after the fleeting figures of Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond.

"Please don't get hurt, any of you!" Galaxina shouted into the distance, as Tails closed the door shut…

"Don't worry about them, they know what they're doing…" Tails told Cosmo and Galaxina…

But as he was about to find out, he was very wrong indeed…


	14. Chapter 14

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 38

1:38 pm

Sonic and Knuckles were racing across the flat landscape, two blurs of cobalt and red to anyone looking at them from the side. Behind them, Raymond was trying his best to keep up. Eggman had told the two of them where the chaos emerald was located, and were now hurrying to reach that spot as soon as possible…

"How much longer guys?" Raymond called out, panting hard, sprinting after the fleeting figures of Sonic and Knuckles.

Sonic shrugged while he was still running. "Not much longer, we should be arriving there in a couple of minutes… You okay, Raymond?"

Raymond gasped for air and nodded. "Yeah, just that I'm not used to running so fast before…" he replied smartly.

"Just tell us if you need to take a break, okay?" Sonic called back.

"Nah, I'm fine, a couple more minutes won't kill me…"

The three of them sped over hills, racing through plains of long grass, weaving through trees in forests, until finally they arrived at their destination. Or so according to Sonic and Knuckles…

"Well, we're here guys…" Sonic told Knuckles and Raymond. Tall pine trees surrounded them, birds cheerfully twittering about. "Eggman should be meeting us soon…"

Knuckles stoically nodded, while Raymond collapsed on the ground, his mouth wide open with his tongue sticking out, out of breath.

"O-Okay… t-tell me w-when he g-gets here…" Raymond gasped for air. Knuckles stood by watching, amused.

"What's wrong, can't keep up with us?" Knuckles smirked.

"Hey I'm sure if I had to run with Sonic everyday to fight Eggman that I'd be a lot faster and have much more endurance than now…" Raymond countered.

Knuckles laughed. "Well-"

"Shhh!" Sonic hissed and put a finger to his lips, cutting Knuckles off. "I think I hear something!"

The three of them remained quiet, the only sound being the nearby trees swooshing their branches in the wind.

Finally, after a couple minutes of silence, Raymond spoke up, fully recovered.

"Well, isn't Eggman supposed to be here by now?" He asked Sonic, who in return shrugged.

"Yeah… something doesn't seem right." Sonic seemed lost in thought. "He specifically told us to meet him right here…"

"In the middle of nowhere?" Raymond exclaimed. "I sense something fishy going on here…"

"Where's the chaos emerald anyways?" Knuckles spoke up. "Usually, I would have sensed it by now if we're close, but I don't feel anything strange, except for the fact that Eggman isn't here…"

"Wait a minute guys…" Raymond started. "I'm suspecting this is a trap…"

Knuckles growled. "Well, I'm ready! Eggman! If you're secretly out there, listening, let's fight already!" Knuckles waved his fists in the air.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a TV fell from the sky and landed on the ground in the middle of Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond. Surprised, they looked up to see Bokkun flying off into the distance.

"Hey!" Get back here!" Knuckles shouted, furious.

"Calm down already, Knuckles!" Sonic tried to stop Knuckles from running after Bokkun. Raymond meanwhile flicked the TV on, and Eggman's grinning face appeared.

"Hohoho!" Eggman cackled.

"Eggman!" Sonic shouted indignantly. "What's the meaning of this!"

"Well wouldn't YOU like to find out now?" Eggman deviously replied.

"Is this some sort of trap, Eggman?" Raymond asked, annoyed.

"Hohoho!" Eggman threw back his head and laughed again.

Knuckles growled "ANSWER US ALREADY EGGMAN!" He clenched his fists.

Eggman stopped laughed, and looked at the three of them sternly. "Now now… be patient and I'll explain EVERYTHING to you!"

"Then explain it already!" Sonic shouted, crossing his arms and tapping his foot impatiently. "Why did you lead us here?"

"Well as you may have already figured out, there is no chaos emerald!" Eggman told them, smiling widely.

"So this is a trap then…?" Raymond muttered. Eggman heard him and laughed again for the third time.

"Hohoho! Raymond, is it?" Raymond nodded. "Yes you are very correct indeed!"

"Well, bring it on already then!" Knuckles scowled.

"I already have in fact! Looks like you're too late, Sonic! My plan has already been unveiled!" The TV shut off, leaving Sonic and Knuckles standing there very confused.

"What does he mean…? I don't see anything…" Knuckles wondered out loud.

"Wait, hold on a second…" Sonic gasped. "Holy crap! I think I know what he's up to! We've got to go back! Let's go Raymond!... Raymond?"

But Raymond was nowhere to been seen…

Raymond raced through the long grass, sprinting towards the direction he had just come from, towards Tails' house. He didn't care about his fatigue, only worrying about what was just about to happen…

He had already figured out what Eggman was up to. Tails! Cosmo! Galaxina! All of them were in danger! Eggman had tricked Sonic, Knuckles, and himself to leave them unguarded so he could capture them and take them as prisoners! There were so many clues along the way! How could he have not noticed them?

Flashbacks appeared through his mind…

…Eggman: I'll be back Raymond, don't you forget! You'll never know what hit you!...

…Tails: Haven't heard anything about Eggman yet for a while now. Do you think he's up to something?"

…Sonic: Wouldn't be surprised. I'll bet he's plotting something this very instant...

…Tails: But why would Eggman tell us when he found a chaos emerald instead of grabbing it for himself?

…Tails: So Eggman specifically said only THREE of us four could go, right?

…Raymond: Alright, take care guys….

Raymond's legs felt like they were burning off, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to run faster. There! Tails' house was straight ahead in the distance! Raymond lowered his shoulder, and plowed through the front door, ripping it clean off of its hinges. He arrived just in time to see Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina sitting by the far wall tied up with ropes. Tails appeared to be knocked unconscious, Cosmo worriedly tending to his bruised head. But Eggman was nowhere to be seen…

"Don't worry guys, I'll get you out of these!" Raymond said encouragingly, and was about to race over to them when Galaxina suddenly shouted.

"Watch out Raymond!" Suddenly out of nowhere, Eggman crashed through the wall in front of Raymond, and pointed a strange looking hose at him. It was attached to a large canister on the side of his Eggcarrier.

"Well well, what do we have here?" Eggman grinned evilly. "Nice to see you, Raymond, you're just in time!"

"What did you do to them..? …Tails?" Raymond snarled, enraged.

"Ah yes, 'lover-boy' tried to play 'hero' and protect Cosmo, but he was easy to deal with…"

Raymond growled. "Shut up Eggman! You better give them back or else I'll—"

"You'll what?" Eggman cut Raymond off. He snickered maliciously. "I think that pretty soon you'll find out that you're not as strong as you think!"

Raymond charged at Eggman, teeth bared, when Eggman fired the hose. A white mist sprayed out of it, showering Raymond, who suddenly stopped, frozen.

"What the-?" Raymond muttered. He couldn't move!

Eggman snickered again. "Looks like our little 'friend' here DOES in fact have a weakness!" Eggman unattached the canister and held it in front of the frozen Raymond. "How does it feel like to be sprayed with Liquid Nitrogen?"

"Arrggh!" Raymond tried his best to budge, but couldn't.

"You see Raymond," Eggman went on to explain. "Using E-101, I've analyzed your powers to great extents. Your genetic makeup consists of many molecules that I like to call… 'fire ions', and when I experimented on them by spraying Dry Ice all over them, they instantly froze, unable to move. Interesting, isn't it? Ah yes, the wonders of science!"

"Shut up Eggman! I swear, when I get out-"

"Ah, but you can't, see!" Eggman pondered for a second. "But yes, I must really be going before Sonic and Knuckles get here, so see ya!"

The Eggcarrier sprouted three robotic arms, and each one grabbed Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina.

"Raymond! Help us!" Galaxina struggled, trying to break free, but to no avail.

"Yes, Raymond, tell them that everything will be alright! That you'll play 'hero' and somehow manage to save the day, and everyone will be safe and sound again!" Eggman taunted.

Raymond looked into Galaxina's frightened eyes. "I-I-…." He tried to move again, but couldn't. He was completely frozen in place.

"Raymond…." Galaxina whispered, lowering her voice. "Please, save us…"

"I…."

"Everything will be alright, won't it? I mean you and Sonic and Knuckles will come after us and beat Eggman, right?"

"I…." Raymond looked like he was about to cry.

Eggman snickered. "Sorry to break it to you Galaxina, but looks like Raymond's too scared after realizing that he DOES in fact have a weakness. Why would you ever think he could save you? Look at him! He's weak!"

"Raymond…." Galaxina lowered her head, a few tears trickling down, hitting the floor. "I don't think you're weak…I know that no matter what, you won't rest until you've rescued us all…"

"Galaxina…" Raymond slowly whispered under his breath. "I'm so sorry… I've failed miserably… again…"

That's the last Raymond saw of Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina as Eggman suddenly blasted off into the distance. Raymond collapsed onto the ground, sobbing, as the effect of the Liquid Nitrogen wore away. Right then, Sonic and Knuckles rushed up next to him, looking wildly around.

"Where are they?" Sonic exclaimed.

Raymond slowly stood up. "They're gone…" he muttered under his breath.

"Huh? What?" Sonic asked Raymond.

"I SAID THEY'RE GONE! AND YOU WERE TOO LATE, SONIC!" Raymond angrily shoved Sonic, making him take a few steps backwards.

"Hey! Don't talk to Sonic that way! Looks like you couldn't stop Eggman either!" Knuckles tried to shove Raymond back, but accidently punched him in the face. Raymond fell to the floor hard, covering his face with his hands, shaking uncontrollably, sobbing.

Sonic sighed, and looked pointedly at Knuckles, who sighed. "Look, I'm sorry Raymond, it's just that-"

"N-No… you were right K-Knuckles… I-I couldn't stop E-Eggman… it's all my f-fault…." Raymond managed to sputter.

Knuckles sighed again. "No, it wasn't your fault Raymond…"

"Y-Yes it was… I-I wasn't strong enough… A-AGAIN…I-I'm so weak…"

"Look-" Sonic started, but was interrupted by Raymond.

"C-Can you l-leave me alone for a w-while g-guys…? I-I j-just need some t-time by m-myself…"

Sonic and Knuckles looked at each other, then slowly and silently left the house, shutting the door closed behind them.

Raymond sniffed, still lying on the floor, covering his face with his hands. "I-I'm s-sorry T-Tails… C-Cosmo…. G-Galaxina…" Raymond whispered. "N-Now I've lost you too….. I-I've f-failed….again…"


	15. Chapter 15

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 39

Eggman's base

DRIP…DRIP…DRIP

Somewhere in the darkness of Eggman's base, water was leaking from a broken pipe, splattering on the cold, hard, metallic, floor. Nearby resided a cell, its entrance barred with rusted, steel pipes. Inside of it, near the far wall, lay three anamorphic beings, resting in silence…

"Ugghh…" Tails quietly moaned as he opened his eyes. Immediately, his head was throbbing with pain, making him instinctively reach for it.

"Careful Tails!" Cosmo's voice echoed through the narrow chamber and hallway outside. She worriedly placed her hands on Tails' forehead, resting his head on her lap.

"Wha—what happened?" Tails slowly asked, but he knew the answer even before the words spilled out of his mouth. "Eggman!" Tails suddenly tried to sit up, but the intense pain made him double up and fall back on Cosmo's lap.

"Here, just calm down Tails…" Cosmo told him in a soothing voice. Tails sleepily shut his eyes closed, relaxing under the touch of Cosmo's soft, delicate, warm hands. She gently rubbed them over Tails' soft fur, singing a lullaby quietly under her breath. Soon, he was gently snoring, his mouth twitched in a small smile. Nearby, Galaxina watched in amazement.

"How did you do that, Cosmo?" Galaxina wondered out loud. Cosmo just smiled, still rubbing Tails' fur.

"I… I can't really explain it, Galaxina. It's just something that I instinctively know what to do with Tails. I think it's love…" Cosmo trailed off, still smiling, watching over Tails sleeping peacefully.

Galaxina smiled back kindly in return. "Aww..." She whispered under her breath. Then, she immediately thought back about how Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond were doing.

"What do you think Eggman is up to?" Cosmo asked Galaxina curiously.

Galaxina shrugged. "I really don't know… But I have faith and confidence in the three of them that they'll be able to rescue us…"

She trailed off into silence, looking over Cosmo and Tails protectively. Soon, Cosmo was sleeping, snuggled into Tails' warm body. Galaxina yawned, feeling sleepy herself. She knew she should feel scared, worried, frightened about what Eggman would do. But no matter how much she tried, she couldn't. Not when she remembered WHO was trying his best to search for and reach them. Galaxina soon after closed her eyes, and fell asleep…

(Cream's house)

"What!" Amy shouted furiously, swinging her piko-hammer about while Sonic and Knuckles tried their best to avoid it. "What do you mean Tails and Cosmo are gone!" She slammed it into a nearby table, teacups and utensils flying into the air.

"Amy," Sonic started, barely diving out of the way as a fork sped towards him. "Could you first stop swinging that… THING?"

Knuckles meanwhile was hiding under the couch, his hands over the back of his head. "Yeah!" Knuckles agreed. "Don't kill us, please!"

Amy's hammer immediately disappeared, but not her temper. "WHY ON EARTH DIDN'T YOU TWO TELL ME ABOUT ANYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT EGGMAN'S MESSAGE?"

"Uhhh…." Sonic started, then shrugged. "Look, I'm really sorry Amy… I know I should have told y-"

Amy growled and clenched her fists. "Never mind…" She looked at Sonic and Knuckles. "Well, WHAT ARE YOU GUYS WAITING FOR? LET'S GO AFTER EGGMAN ALREADY!"

"Can you please stop shouting Amy?" A brownish colored rabbit responded gently, trying her best to calm Amy down.

"Amy, we can't just go and attack Eggman you know!" Knuckles replied from underneath the couch.

"Why not?" Amy retaliated.

"Because he somehow managed to beat Raymond!" Sonic finished, silencing Amy. Taking advantage of her silence, he continued. "Somehow he managed to create something powerful to stop Raymond from preventing Eggman from taking Tails and Cosmo away!"

Amy was quiet for a moment, before lowering her voice to a more normal volume. "But why? Why does Eggman want Tails and Cosmo?"

"I…. don't know…" Sonic replied in thought.

"I do…" Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, and Cream all gasped when they heard Raymond enter the room. He looked close to his normal self now, not having any indications that he had been crying before. But his facial expression was dark and gloomy.

"I know why Eggman wants Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina. Because now he can force us to do whatever he wants or else he'll threaten to hurt them, that's why…" Raymond finished, and crossed his arms.

The five of them remained in stunned silence, until Knuckles finally broke it.

"So you mean to tell us now that whatever he wants to do, we have no power to stop it or else one of them will get hurt, or even killed?" Knuckles asked.

Sonic shook his head. "I doubt he's going to kill any of them. That seems a bit too much for E-"

"He's not playing around anymore guys…" Raymond cut Sonic off. "He told me… he's been toying around with you guys, experimenting, testing your skills and powers. All the times you thought you've beaten him in the past, he planned for that to happen. And now he's found our weaknesses and is using it against us…"

"But then why did he help us when we fought and defeated the Meterex?" Amy wondered out loud.

"Ah, I see now…" Sonic replied. "He didn't account for someone like the Meterex to be powerful enough to almost destroy everyone, so he pretended to side with us so that he'd have a better chance of defeating them. And with them out of the way, he could go back to working on how to finally overpower us once and for all…"

"Yeah, that's what I'm guessing…" Raymond answered.

"Wait a second, who is 'Galaxina' by the way?" Knuckles curiously asked Raymond.

Raymond sighed sadly. "That's right, we forgot to tell you guys… Well she's basically Cosmo's sister, but somehow she also managed to escape the ship when the Meterex attacked and destroyed it…"

Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, and Cream all nodded, remaining silent for another few moments. Finally, Sonic spoke up.

"Well, we can't not TRY, right guys?" He tried his best to fake a smile in the gloomy atmosphere. Raymond and Knuckles shrugged.

"I'm game…" Knuckles responded.

"I was going to go after him anyways…even if it meant going by myself…" Raymond answered. He thought about his promise to Galaxina the morning she had first woken up on this planet.

(Flashback): …Raymond: Don't worry, I won't hurt you! In fact, I'll protect you from anyone that wants to harm you instead!"

He hadn't thought much about making that promise, but now that she was gone, all because he couldn't stop it from happening, he remembered it crystal clear. He had broken that promise… Just like the one he had broken to protect Emily…

Sonic noticed Raymond looking at the floor miserably. "Raymond, you okay?" Sonic asked him, concerned.

"Nah I'm fine… just thinking about stuff…" Raymond replied, looking up. He managed a small smile.

"Well, I want to go too!" Amy exclaimed, but Sonic shook his head.

"Didn't you hear? It's WAY too dangerous now, this isn't the same old Eggman anymore!" Sonic responded.

"So? I'm not going to just sit back at home and twiddle my thumbs while my friends are in danger!" Amy retaliated, her piko-hammer reappearing in her hand.

Knuckles shuffled nervously away. "I'll…. be under the couch if anyone needs me…" He quickly dove under the sofa again.

"Amy, please listen…" Sonic sighed.

"Why should I listen to you? Why don't you want me to go?" Amy yelled furiously.

"Because I care about you, that's why!" Sonic suddenly shouted. Everyone suddenly became dead quiet. Sonic sighed, and turned to Raymond and Knuckles. "Come on guys, let's go now…"

The three of them silently walked out the door into the late afternoon day, shutting it closed behind them. Amy was still in shocked silence, looking at the closed door. Then, she dropped to her knees, looking down at the ground. Cream ran over to her side, putting an arm reassuringly around Amy's shoulders.

"He… does….really…love….me….." Amy slowly whispered under her breath.

Cream smiled kindly. "I'm happy for you Amy!" She tried her best to cheer Amy up.

Amy turned her head around, and stared at the closed door once again. "Please be careful Sonic… I sure hope you know what you're doing now…"

Sonic meanwhile was slowly walking down a dirt road that led towards the direction they believed Eggman's base to be. He turned around slowly, flanked by Knuckles and Raymond, looking back at Cream's house behind him.

"I hope you'll be okay Amy…" Sonic muttered under his breath… Then, he turned back around, and the three of them for the second time that day began to pick up their pace until they were silently running…


	16. Chapter 16

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 40

Mobius City

6:36 pm

It was a normal evening in Mobius City. The sun had just about almost set, the sky turning almost pitch-black. Lights from the cars and stores cast their glow onto the city, giving off the typical city-like look. The streets and sidewalks were busy with anamorphic animals and vehicles milling around. The sound of cars honking and speeding along the road as well as the sound of animals talking made up the typical city noises one would normally expect to hear. Except a new sound joined the fray…

"Hohoho!" Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond sharply turned around from on one of the sidewalks to see a large television on one of the skyscrapers broadcast a signal from Eggman's headquarters. His face reeked with delight and glee, as well as the two robots standing to either side of him. Eggman rubbed his hands maliciously, grinning widely.

"Greetings, Mobius City!" Everywhere, animals stopped from what they were doing and turned to look up at Eggman's face on the TV. Most of them remained silent, wanting to hear what silly new plan Eggman had come up with this time. Others booed and made faces at the screen.

"Greetings again to you all! Stop what you are doing, and remember this day as it goes down in history. For today marks the start of the EGGMAN EMPIRE!" Eggman crowed victoriously, Bocoe and Docoe congratulating him. Everyone else rolled their eyes; as if they hadn't heard THIS before…

However, suddenly Eggman surprised them by what he said next. "Yes, I know… I know what most of you are thinking. That I'm no real threat, that your precious little blue hedgehog will come running and save the day!" Here all the animals clapped and cheered, mocking Eggman who just sat back in his chair and smiled evilly. "Well not anymore…" The sound of cheering died away, now all the animals listening intently. "Not anymore… Because now, I HAVE found a way to defeat your little savior… Because NOW, he won't be enough to save you! And even if he DOES manage to find a way to win, well he can't!"

Suddenly, an image and Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina in their prison cell appeared on the TV, currently sleeping peacefully. However, that didn't change the looks of shocked faces from everybody standing around.

"Looks like your 'hero' was TOO SLOW this time! Just like he'll be when I dominate this world, once and for all! HAHAHA!" The TV stopped its connection with Eggman's base, showing static instead. Immediately, everybody turned to each other and began to talk, the noise of their chatter swelling to a loud volume. They all seemed a little nervous, but not too much. Hasn't Eggman always claimed to finally find something to knock Sonic off? But even with that and the added 'cheesiness' of the speech, something made this seem a bit different, as if he actually meant it. Maybe it was the tone of his voice that made him seem scarier and more dangerous. Or maybe it was the fact that he managed to capture Tails and Cosmo and whoever the other person was…

"I don't like the look of how this is going guys…" Knuckles muttered, looking slowly from side to side. Next to him, Raymond agreed.

"Yeah, who knows what he's going to do now? I say all the more reason we HAVE to strike and attack NOW to rescue Tails and Cosmo and Galaxina!" Raymond said pointedly.

Sonic shook his head. "Come on guys, we need a plan! I'm not going to risk any of your lives on a 'suicide', head-on attack mission! But yeah I agree with Raymond, we have to do something fast before Eggman uses them to his advantage!"

"Hmmm…" Raymond thought for a while, then snapped his fingers as a thought crossed his mind. "Hey, how about this…?"

The three of them talked in hushed whispers, forming a tight circle so that no one else could hear them, as Raymond explained his plan. Sonic and Knuckles meanwhile processed this information, nodding slowly.

"Doesn't hurt to give it a shot…"

"Yeah, seems like a decent idea. Not like we got we have anything else to try…"

Raymond grinned. "Alright, let's do this guys!" They set off in the direction of Eggman's base, now full with confidence, even if the situation seemed like it was spinning out of control dangerously.

(Eggman's base)

A narrow corridor deep in the interior of Eggman's fortress in the countryside led to a small, metal door. Eggman whistled to himself as he nonchalantly strolled along, obviously in a good mood. Just this morning while also testing Raymond's genetic makeup, he had also successfully gathered all of his tests on Sonic and Knuckles, and compiled them together into a large database that ran 'battle-like' simulations to determine the ultimate counterattack to each of their powers. Using that data, Eggman had built three 'super-robots' for Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond, as well as assemble another massive army of robots. Eggman smiled to himself as he swung open the metal door to reveal his top-secret laboratory, Bokkun sitting on a nearby table, waiting for him patiently.

"Boss! Everything is all set up and ready!" Bokkun excitedly informed Eggman. For the first time ever, Eggman smiled back and said: "Thank you Bokkun, you've done your job well."

He pulled up a chair and sat in front of a massive computer, and began to type in various calculations and formulas onto the server. As he typed away, he thought to himself…

Soon his 'ULTIMATE' army would be ready, as well as the other three super-robots he had created. With their combined power, NOTHING would be able to stand in his way! Eggman threw back his head and cackled. The world would be his soon!


	17. Chapter 17

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 41

Eggman's base

7:02 pm

CLANG!

Tails awoke sharply to the sound of metal clanging on metal. He wildly searched around for the source of the noise, looking from side to side. He spotted Galaxina, curled up sleeping nearby him, but he couldn't figure out what had made the sound. Confused, he lay back down, but instead of feeling the cold hard floor as he had expected, his head rested on something soft, like a pillow…

He looked behind him to see Cosmo sleeping as well, snuggling with his two tails in her arms. While Tails was sleeping, he had been resting his head on her side… Tails smiled warmly, and yawned, slowly getting up.

Eggman sure didn't look like he was going to pay them a visit anytime soon, so Tails decided to use this time to observe his surroundings. The metal room was about 50 feet wide and 80 feet long. Three sides of it was solid, steel wall, while the fourth showed a view of the hallway upstairs to Eggman's base. But it was barred off by metal bars going horizontally as well as vertically, the small square holes it created was no bigger than a square inch. In the center of the barred wall lay a large steel door, locked with the use of a key and combination. There was no window, seeing as the cell was underground. A wooden, termite-eaten bench lay off to the corner. But overall, the room was entirely bare. A single light bulb glowed overhead, making maneuvering around the cell very hard to do in the dim light.

Tails perked one of his ears to try to hear anything, but all he could hear was the sound of Cosmo and Galaxina gently snoring…

Tails smiled to himself as he went over to Cosmo and bent down on his knees. He leaned down and gently hugged her from behind, stroking her emerald green hair with one hand.

Cosmo gradually opened one eye, then the other. She yawned, and turned around to look into Tails' face…

"Sleep well, Cosmo?" Tails kindly asked her. Cosmo nodded in reply.

"Yeah, don't worry I'm fine!" She faltered. "Well except for the fact that I'm in a prison cell in Eggman's base…"

Tails smiled at her. "Don't worry, we'll find a way to get out somehow. I'm sure of it! Either that or Sonic, Knuckles, and Raymond will help save us!"

Cosmo smiled cheerfully back in return. "Yeah! You're right, there's really nothing to worry about! I know you'll find a way! You always do!"

"Aww… thanks!" Tails blushed and modestly scratched the back of his head. He turned around to look at Galaxina. "Should we wake her up as well?"

Cosmo also turned to look at her older sister. "I think we probably shouldn't bother her…"

Tails nodded in thought. "Yeah you're right. It's been a long day for her… for ALL of us really."

"Mhmm… I agree…" Startled, Tails and Cosmo turned to see Galaxina sitting on the floor cross-legged, looking at them.

"Hey you're awake!" Cosmo smiled at Galaxina, who smiled back in return.

"Yeah, I just woke up to hear you two talking…" Galaxina explained.

"Sorry if we bothere-," Cosmo started to apologize, but Galaxina cut her off.

"No it's not your fault…" She sighed. "I was having a lot of bad nightmares anyways…"

The three of them remained sitting in silence, until Tails finally broke it. "On a different topic, I've spent some time examining our surroundings, and it appears like we're pretty deep underground. Those three walls…" Tails indicated to the steel walls that enclosed the cell. "I don't think we'll be able to burrow through or break them down. So I'm guessing we should probably try that one." Tails pointed at the fourth wall that was made up entirely of metal bars, except for the door in the middle. "That's probably our best chance of escaping; all we need to do is either get through the door or break the bars down somehow…"

"Yeah…" Galaxina nodded back. Tails sharply turned to look at her.

"You okay? You're acting a bit strange…" Tails asked her in concern. Immediately Galaxina changed her expression to smile at Tails.

"Oh no, it's really nothing…" Galaxina replied, trailing off. Tails still seemed a bit doubtful.

"Are you sure? Is there something on your mind that's bothering you?" Tails again asked her.

"Well…" Galaxina started to reply, but didn't finish her sentence. After a while, Tails sighed and looked closely into her face.

"Galaxina…" Tails' expression melted into one of more sympathy and caring. "…you know I really care about you too… I can't stand to see something bothering you… are you sure you're okay?" Tails slowly said, managing a small smile.

"It's just that I've been thinking about something…" Galaxina started to explain. Tails nodded and remained silent.

"Well…" Galaxina sighed. "…It's just something Eggman said back when he captured us… You see you weren't awake at the time, but Raymond arrived just in time to save us. But Eggman managed to stop him, he managed to defeat him. And while Raymond couldn't save us, Eggman laughed at him and claimed he had experimented on his powers. That makes me wonder if maybe Eggman did the same thing to Sonic and Knuckles… That makes me scared to think that maybe they won't be enough to beat Eggman, that maybe he'll instead defeat THEM…" Suddenly, Galaxina burst into tears.

"Oh I don't know Tails! I'm so scared! Not for me, but for Raymond! I'm scared that he feels like it was all of his fault that we were captured, and will try to do something reckless to make up for it! I'm scared that he'll get himself killed trying to save us!" Galaxina sobbed, burying her face into Tails' shoulder and hugging him. Tails looked dumbfounded at her, in shock.

"There there, it'll be okay…" Tails tried his best to comfort her, gently hugging her back.

"No that's where you're wrong! It won't be okay! I have this bad feeling something is going to happen…!" Galaxina sniffed, still crying. "I had a nightmare where Sonic and Knuckles and Raymond managed to rescue us, and right when we were about to leave the base, Eggman pulls out a gun and shoots me! Except Raymond jumps in the way and takes the bullet for me! He sacrifices his life for ME! And right when he's about to die, he smiles at me and admits he really loves me! But he says that I deserved someone better than him, that I deserve someone who can really protect me and make me feel safe with them around! So right when he dies, he apologizes to me for not being there when we were captured, for not being who I had hoped he would be! But he says that he was glad that after Emily's death, he was finally able to feel at peace that he could really do something worth doing with his life, and that is give it up for mine! So that I could go on and- …"

Galaxina broke down crying even harder. Next to Tails, Cosmo was silently looking sorrowfully at the ground.

Galaxina managed to continue. "…And the hardest part is that I can REALLY imagine that happening!"

"Shh…." Tails comforted her by slowly rocking her back and forth. "I'm sure it won't have to come to that… It ALWAYS turns out fine in the end… good ALWAYS wins, not evil…"

Galaxina sniffed sadly again, breaking away from Tails. "Yeah… I guess you're right… I'm just scared for us… for him… But it probably won't have to turn out that way…" She tried her best to smile and act cheerful.

"Thanks you two…" Galaxina told Tails and Cosmo, who smiled back half sadly, half cheerfully.

"Even dark fades away when the sun comes out again. You just have to keep holding on through those times. You just have to believe that everything will turn out fine, and it will, Galaxina!" Tails grinned, and flashed a thumbs-up.

"Right!" Cosmo spoke up. "Even when Tails had to kill me, it all turned out okay when Raymond, Tails, and Knuckles helped bring me to life!"

Tails nodded. "So you see, even when you're going through the toughest times of your life, just keep on persevering and it'll be fine!"

Galaxina smiled and nodded. "Yeah! There's nothing I should be worried about then!" On the outside, she was full of confidence and hope.

But on the inside, she was bubbling with fear and worry… The same question kept haunting her over and over: "What if they were WRONG?" ….


	18. Chapter 18

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 42

7:25 pm

The sun had already set in the horizon as the crescent moon took its place in the night sky. The warm, late summer night descended upon the landscape, the crickets' chirping barely audible in the background. There was no breeze at all, the humidity of the air rapidly rising every minute that slowly passed. A blue hedgehog lay flat on his stomach, seemingly motionless in the still grass. He carefully moved his head just a few inches to glance at the view in front of him. Sonic was laying hidden in a small field, ahead was Eggman's base. It was half built into a solid rocky cliff, its base all cemented in the slope while the top stuck out. It slightly resembled a lighthouse, one giant skylight slowly scanning the field for any intruders. Right below the pinnacle of the base was a circular deck that curved all the way around the cylindrical shape of the base. Sonic couldn't really depict any robots that might be keeping watch on there, but one could never be too sure. He grunted as he carefully moved one hand out in front of him, then the other, carefully inching through the grass. He finally made his way to a large boulder in the middle of the field, and was joined almost instantly by Knuckles and Raymond.

"Don't see anyone keeping watch…" Sonic quietly muttered to the two of them. Raymond shrugged.

"I didn't see anyone either at the west side," Raymond also told the group.

"Nor the east side," Knuckles added. "That seems strange though, Eggman would definitely be expecting an attack from us right away, so why isn't he on his guard?"

"Hmm…" Sonic thought. "Maybe he didn't think we'd try to attack after he stopped you Raymond. Or it could be that he's not here and moved…"

Raymond warily shook his head. "Maybe we're missing something… But let's head on for now…"

The three of them silently nodded and started to crawl through the grass again. Usually against a fight with Eggman, Sonic and Knuckles would attack head on recklessly. But now that they didn't know what they were dealing with, they were extra cautious. And they were trying to slip in and out of Eggman's base and rescue Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina without him noticing. So they really couldn't afford a confrontation…

"Shhh!" Sonic hissed as Knuckles accidentally snapped a twig. The three of them froze, looking nervously at each other. 5 seconds passed… 10 seconds… 20 seconds…

After a full minute without anything happening, the three of them keep continuing onwards, Sonic giving Knuckles a reproachful look.

"Reach…Pull…Reach…Crawl…Reach…Pull…" Raymond kept thinking to himself in his mind over and over again. "Reach…Pull…Reach…Reach…Pull….Crawl…wait hold on a second…Pull…Crawl…oh whatever!"

He was just about to stretch out one of his arms when something flashed out of the corner of his eyes. Instinctively, he pulled his hand back, right when the spotlight whizzed by. It moved by Raymond two inches from his face, right where his hand would have been if he hadn't pulled it back.

"Whew…" Raymond thought to himself in relief. "Dang…that was WAY too close!"

A few yards to the left of Raymond, Sonic noticed the spotlight searching in their area as well. He silently signaled for Knuckles and Raymond to stop moving and remain motionless. They held their breaths as the spotlight lazily traveling around them. It barely passed by Knuckles' feet, moving to the right where Sonic was. He saw the spotlight move towards his head, and ducked down as it almost revealed his location by shining on the spot where his head just was. After spinning in a circle around Raymond and crossing by Sonic again, it drifted off a ways to the left. The three of them collectively breathed in relief, scuttling to a ditch that lay about 300 yards away from Eggman's base. They crouched in there, hiding from the ever-persistent spotlight and anyone else that might be keeping watch.

"Alright guys, we're almost there!" Sonic encouragingly whispered to Knuckles and Raymond. They nodded silently back in response.

"Well do you see any openings we can slip through?" Raymond asked Sonic, who shrugged.

"We can definitely cross out the front door as an option. A window wouldn't be so bad really…"

"Like that one?" Sonic and Raymond turned to see Knuckles pointing at the base. They looked to see that he was indicating to a window at the top of the base.

"No we're definitely not goi—"

"Yeah that looks perfect!" Raymond cut Sonic off in midsentence. "I doubt Eggman will expect us to climb all the way to the top!"

Sonic silently whistled as he glanced at the indicated window again. "That's a good 20 stories guys, I don't think that's the smartest idea…"

"Which is why we're doing that because as Raymond said Eggman won't expect it!" Knuckles and Raymond grinned and gave each other high-fives while Sonic rolled his eyes.

"Look do we even know where Eggman is keeping Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina? For all we know, they could be WAY DEEP underground!"

"Then let's ask Eggman for directions!" Raymond joked.

"And while we're at it, maybe we can sit down and have tea together!" Knuckles sarcastically added.

Sonic sighed. "Really let's get serious guys…"

"I am serious though, about the part where we climb all the way to the top…I think it's a good idea really!" Raymond tried his best to keep his voice down.

"Does that mean we're not really going to have tea?" Knuckles asked them in concern.

Sonic rolled his eyes again. "No Knuckles…" Sonic sighed. "And we're not doing that guys," he stated flatly. "I think it's way too risky for one because we don't have anything to catch us if we fall. And besides, I'm sure there's and easier way…"

Raymond shrugged. "Whatever, I still like my idea…"

"Tell me why again we don't just knock on Eggman's front door and annihilate every robot he sends at us like we used to?" Knuckles asked Sonic questioningly.

"Because like I've BEEN saying, it's too risky as well!"

"When'd you become so careful Sonic? You used to be the most fearless, reckless fighter!" Knuckles noticed and pointed out.

Sonic sighed. "Times have really changed Knuckles… This isn't those old days where good was always guaranteed to win, now we're facing a whole new, more dangerous evil…"

"Eggman isn't the same anymore, Knuckles. He's really serious about killing us! This isn't fun and games anymore you know…" Raymond dryly commented.

"I never said it was fun and games! All I did was just ask why-"

"Cut it out you two!" Sonic sharply interrupted.

Raymond sighed and kicked a pebble with one foot He watched as it bounced off the side of the ditch. "Sorry guys, I'm just in a really bad mood…"

Knuckles nodded and crossed his arms. "Yeah I can imagine… You don't have to be sorry, it's really no big deal…"

"Hey guys, check this out. Look over there…" Sonic motioned for Raymond and Knuckles to look at the east side of the base. There, hardly visible, was a small window as well. Except unlike all the others, the lights inside were turned off.

"That… looks like a winner!" Raymond quietly answered back.

"I suppose so…" Knuckles agreed.

"So this is the plan right?" Raymond started to map out the details of their "rescue-mission" plan. He drew a diagram of the ditch and the base in the sand on the ground of the ditch.

"Here's where we are right now…" He pointed at the ditch. "And here's the base…" He pointed at the picture of the base he drew.

"Go on…" Sonic responded slowly.

"So what happens is you or Knuckles breaks through the window…"

"I'll do it!" Knuckles volunteered by raising his hand.

"Okay so Knuckles goes through the window and-"

"How about you and Knuckles go through the window?" Sonic cut Raymond off. "Then you two split up and search for Tails and Cosmo and Galaxina while I go through the front and distract Eggman to buy you guys time. How does that sound?"

"I'm game!" Raymond nodded.

"Alright, let's fight already!" Knuckles raised his fist and took a couple punches in the air in front of him.

"Here let me say something first…" Raymond motioned for Sonic and Knuckles to stand next to him in order to form a circle.

"No matter WHAT happens, we don't leave this place until we rescue them, got it?" Raymond placed a hand in the middle.

"Got it!" Sonic and Knuckles agreed, placing their own hands on top of Raymond's. "We're going to finish what we set out to do, no matter what!"

As they broke off and readied themselves, Raymond suddenly had a random thought appear in his mind…

"Even if it means giving up your life in order to save them…"


	19. Chapter 19

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 43

7:48 pm

Eggman's base

A lone red fox ran swiftly, yet silently across a desolate, dark, grassy field. Close behind him, a red echidna followed his movements, keeping to the shadows near the walls of Eggman's base. Without alerting anybody inside, the two of them had successfully managed to sneak to the East face of the fortress. Raymond carried a coil of rope around his shoulder, and when he reached a certain point, he stopped running and unwound the rope. He whipped it over his head in circles a few times, then flung it up as high as he could. On the end of the rope was a sharp harpoon-like spearhead that contained three, long, sharp prongs. The spearhead flew up high in the air, almost out of sight, when it lost momentum and fell back towards the earth. On the way down, one of the prongs managed to catch on a windowsill. Raymond experimented its sturdiness by tugging sharply on it a few times, then when satisfied, stepped back a couple of feet. Behind Raymond, Knuckles readied himself, then jumped towards the rope, clinging to it when it wrapped around his hands. He started to scale the wall on the rope, little by little…

Once there was enough space of rope below Knuckles, Raymond jumped agilely, springing off the ground and grasping the rope between his hands. He followed close behind Knuckles as the two of them begin their long, arduous ascent to the target window.

"Reach….grab…pull…reach…grab…pull…" Raymond kept on thinking to himself, copying his method from when he had been crawling through the field. Adrenalin rushed through Raymond's veins and pounded in his ears as once or twice he miscalculated how far to reach, and almost plummeted to the ground when one of his hands slipped, leaving him clinging onto the rope for dear life. He managed to desperately cling onto a lower section of the rope though, recovering himself each time…

The two of them seemed almost invisible, hidden in the shadows of the wall. But to them, they couldn't have felt anymore exposed than they felt like they were now…

Raymond gritted his teeth and chanced a look down. He and Knuckles had already been climbing for what seemed like at least five minutes, navigating their way up the rope through the dark. The ground was definitely a long ways down; a fall from here would undoubtedly kill him. He then rotated his head to look up, past Knuckles' body, and spotted the window. It was just several more yards away, not anymore than 20 feet left to go...

Knuckles grasped the windowsill with one hand, then reached and pulled his other arm on top of it. He hoisted himself up, and clambered onto the small ledge the windowsill provided, peering down at Raymond.

"Psstt! I'm up!" Knuckles whispered to Raymond, who was in the process of lifting himself up onto the windowsill as well. Raymond nodded back silently in acknowledgement, pointing at the window. Knuckles drew one fist back, and was about to punch right through it when Raymond grabbed his arm from behind, stopping him.

"Wha-?" Raymond had already pulled the spearhead from the edge of the windowsill and motioned for Knuckles to move out of the way. They switched places, as Raymond grabbed the harpoon with both hands, and placed the tip on the surface of the glass. He pushed forward, and as the blade penetrated, he drew a circle. Raymond pushed the center of the circle as it fell away, dully clattering to the ground on the hallway. Raymond squeezed himself through the small hole, Knuckles right behind. They dropped to the floor, crouching, looking from side to side warily. Raymond turned back to look at Knuckles, and motioned with his hand for them to follow the hallway to the right.

The two of them cautiously made their way down the hallway, glancing at the windows as they passed by. Finally, Raymond stopped at one, and peered outside. He could barely spot Sonic in the distance, standing on the edge of the same ditch they had been hiding in. Raymond lifted a hand up to the window, and let loose a ball of flame…

Sonic was nonchalantly standing right in front of Eggman's base when he noticed a light from the corner of his eye. He looked to see Raymond and Knuckles silently wave at him from one of the windows on the North-East section of the base. He nodded, waved back, and sped off to the front door of Eggman's base…

Raymond noticed Sonic head for the front, and immediately began to run down the opposite direction they had came from. Knuckles took the other route, sticking to the right. They had both only run a few yards when instantly, the alarms surrounding the walls started to wail. The entire base with lit up with flashing red sirens now as both Raymond and Knuckles heard the sound of a garage opening underneath their feet…

Sonic blasted through the metal front door in his trademark spin-dash attack when he heard the alarms sound. To his immediate left, he felt the ground rumble as he heard something which closely resembled the sound of a garage being opened. Without wasting any time, he spin-dashed his way down the hallway in front of him…

Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina were sitting in their cell when the alarms above their head blasted at full volume, startling them.

"Hey guys, it's them!" Tails exclaimed, jumping up. He ran over to the barred wall and placed both hands on it.

"HEY! HELP US! WE'RE DOWN HERE!" Tails tried his best to shout as loudly as he could to get Sonic, Raymond, and Knuckles' attention. "HELP US!"

Next to him, Cosmo worriedly placed a hand on his shoulder, looking at him in fear. "Tails, what if Eggman hears us? What if-?"

"It's okay Cosmo, it doesn't matter! They're going to save us anyways!" Tails replied cheerfully. "HELP!" Tails violently shook the bars of the wall.

Raymond was sprinting down the hallway when he thought he heard something above the noise of the alarms. He stopped running, and perked one of his ears up, listening intently.

"HELP!"

"Tails!" Raymond tried his best to detect where the sound was coming from. "Hello? Guys?"

Tails smiled as he heard Raymond's voice above the din. "RAYMOND! HELP US! WE'RE UNDERGROUND!"

"Don't worry! I'll rescue you guys!" Raymond sped off in search of the nearest stairs.

Down in the cell, Galaxina heard Raymond as well, and nervously called out: "Be careful Raymond!" She sighed, and anxiously waited next to Tails and Cosmo, crossing her arms.

Knuckles was speeding along the hallway when he turned a sharp curve and smacked into something and was sent flying backwards on his back on the floor.

"Hey!" Knuckles growled and recovered himself quickly, hands out in battle-ready stance. He looked to see a medium-sized robot in the shape of a scorpion, except that it was made from metal. On its back rested two rocket launchers as well as a large turret/machine gun. Its tail was lifted menacingly over its head, the tip razor sharp.

"You wanna fight? Come on then!" Knuckles taunted as the scorpion-machine struck downwards with its tail. Knuckles rolled out of the way as the tip embedded itself in the ground where he had just previously stood a millisecond ago.

"Ha!" Knuckles deftly raced up to the scorpion and smacked it across the head, loosening a few wires and bolts inside the neck. He again jumped out of the way as the tail sliced back around, nearly decapitating him. Knuckles landed a ways in front of the scorpion on his feet grinning.

"Ha! Looks like…..uh-oh..." Knuckles smirk turned upside down when the scorpion pointed its machine gun at Knuckles and fired away. Bullets rapidly flew out of the tank, pounding the wall of the hallway. Knuckles managed to roll past the scorpion as it again attacked with its tail. He knocked it out of the way, and jumped on top of the scorpion. Knuckles, using both hands, grabbed the machine gun that was still firing, and pulled it free of the scorpion's back, wires dangling from under it. It was still firing when he whipped it around at the same time the blade on the top of the tail raced down to meet him. The tail was ripped to shreds as the white-hot bullets sliced through it easily.

Knuckles then discarded the machine gun, and drew a fist over his head, and rapidly pounded away at the back of the scorpion's neck, until finally, the armor peeled away and Knuckles smashed and short-circuited the circuitry inside. The scorpion wobbled a few times, then slowly tipped over and crashed to the ground as Knuckles jumped out of the way, yelling in victory. He was about to congratulate himself when he remembered what his main mission was. With no time to waste, Knuckles continued to run down the hallway, searching for Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina.

Sonic on the other hand was still on the first floor. Here, things seemed a bit too eerily quiet for his liking. He was slowly navigating his way along the hallway, aware that he had to hurry up in order to find Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina. He reached the end of the hallway as it split left and right. Sonic looked both ways, not figuring out any difference between the two. He shrugged, and finally decided to take the left route. Sonic jogged along, picking up his pace a little bit…

Eggman was watching all of this unfold with a blank expression on a large screen TV.  
He was currently in his throne room at the very top of the base. Beside him, Bocoe, Docoe, and Bokkun turned to look at him expectantly.

"Are you going to do anything boss?" Bokkun finally asked after a while.

"Yeah, Knuckles managed to beat one of your "ultimate" robots!" Docoe exclaimed sarcastically.

"Well….?" Bocoe trailed off as he saw Eggman grin, and flip open a case with a red button inside. He held a finger over it, moving it in circles, before pushing it down.

On the first floor of the base, hundreds and hundreds of scorpion-machines poured out from a concealed garage into the base. They stormed along the floor, hunting down any intruders in their path.

Behind them, three shadowy figures followed close behind, waiting for the stampede to abate. One of them stayed on the first floor, slowly walking after a certain blue hedgehog, while the other two nonchalantly walked up the stairs towards Raymond and Knuckles…

"Hohoho!" Eggman laughed out loud when he saw his three creations take after Sonic, Raymond, and Knuckles. "Time to realize that you can't win by speed or strength alone Sonic and Knuckles! HAHAHA!" ...


	20. Chapter 20

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 44

Eggman's base

7:51 pm

Sonic rushed down the narrow, dim hallway at full speed. Eggman probably already knew that he, Knuckles, and Raymond were here, and Sonic expected a counterattack at any second. But after a few minutes of desperately searching around the interior of the base, he STILL didn't spot any enemies or Tails, Cosmo, or Galaxina.

Sonic stopped running and held out his wrist in front of him. Wrapped around it was a com-link communicator he had suggested all three of them wear before they infiltrated Eggman's base. He pushed and held a button on the side of it and spoke into it.

"Guys? Raymond? Knuckles?" All Sonic heard was the sound of static on the other side of the communicator.

"Raymond? Knuckles? Do you read me? Over." Still nothing else but static. Sonic cursed bad naturedly and let go of the button, ending the transmission.

"Heeelloo?" Sonic cautiously took in his surroundings. He had just exited the hallway, entering a medium-sized room. The whole room was fairly blank except for a few computers and tables surrounding the room. It seemed like it used to be some sort of lab or engine room or something of the sort; the blast of the cool air conditioning and the hum of machinery nearby confirmed Sonic's suspicions. There was no way out except to go back the way he had just come from; back into the hallway.

But instead, Sonic decided to explore the room some more instead. He made his way to the other end, and clicked the power button on one of the computers, but to no avail. The whole power to the entire room had been cut a long time ago; this room probably had been used at one point but forgotten about.

CLANG!

Sonic sharply whipped his head around, staring at the opening to the hallway where he had come from. "Hello?"

CLANG! CLANG!

Sonic gritted his teeth. Something seemed to be coming his way.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The sound of metal feet walking along the corridor outside grew closer and closer with every second that passed. Then suddenly, it stopped. Silence… Sonic held his breath, all tensed up. A few seconds passed… 10… Nothing…

"Hello?"

CLANG!

Sonic instinctively jumped out of the way as a laser fired from the entrance to the room. It passed under him, exploding into the wall as he deftly landed on a table, waiting for his enemy to appear.

CLANG!

Whoever, or WHATEVER was right outside the door. Slowly, it entered the room, its body and face hidden by a long cloak that extended from the top of its head to its feet. One arm was still raised, pointing at him, still smoking from shooting the laser.

"Who are you?" Sonic shouted as the mysterious figure charged up its power cannon and fired away again. Sonic ducked, and started to spin faster and faster. The laser deflected off of his body, and he charged in his spin-dash attack. He hit the figure head on, expecting to blow a hole in it. But as he made contact, he felt pain race up his body as he was thrown backwards onto the hard floor, the figure seemingly unfazed from his attack.

"WHO ARE YOU? SHOW YOURSELF!" Sonic shouted, lying on his back on the floor, grabbing his side in pain.

The figure grabbed both ends of its hood, and slowly pulled it back to reveal…

"Oh sh—!" Sonic barely rolled out of the way as his arch nemesis Metal Sonic fired his laser again, burning a hole in the ground. As Sonic leapt over a nearby table, shielding himself from the barrage of missiles that fired out of Metal Sonic's other hand, Metal Sonic started to spin-dash. He launched himself right at the desk Sonic was hiding behind, tearing through it like Swiss cheese. The impact threw Sonic halfway across the room as Metal Sonic crashed into the wall. Sonic tried to get up and recover as quickly as he could, but his body was all bruised up from Metal Sonic's attacks. But he couldn't quit here!

Sonic gritted his teeth, and cautiously began to circle Metal Sonic, who pulled himself free from the wall and turned to face Sonic head on.

"Think you're fast don'tcha?" Sonic yelled as he spin-dashed at Metal Sonic at full speed. However, he only met air when Metal Sonic easily sidestepped and dodged the attack. Metal Sonic then proceeded to grab Sonic in mid-attack as he spun by, and fling him onto a desk, breaking it in half as Sonic crashed right through. As Sonic lay motionless on the ground, groaning in pain, Metal Sonic seemed to smirk and held his cannon over Sonic's head…

Suddenly, Metal Sonic was knocked off to the side as Raymond hit him head on, sending both of them crashing into the wall. As Raymond leapt out and began to barrage Metal Sonic with an array of punches, he called out to Sonic.

"Sonic! They're downstairs! You're much faster than me, so go hurry and rescue them before it's too late!"

Sonic nodded and picked himself off of the ground. He turned around and sped off into the hallway again.

Raymond looked over his shoulder at Sonic's fleeting figure, then turned to face Metal Sonic who had pulled himself free from Raymond's grasp.

Metal Sonic charged up his cannon and fired away, but Raymond brought his arm up in time to deflect it off of his mechanical wrist band. The laser harmlessly bounced off, and crashed through the screen of a nearby computer.

Raymond rolled out of the way as Metal Sonic spin-dashed at him, and turned around quickly to let loose a stream of fire at him.

"Sorry, speed isn't everything…" The fire from Raymond's hands hit Metal Sonic head on, making him shield his face with his arms. As the flames died away, Raymond could see Metal Sonic's arms heavily charred and burnt.

"!" Raymond witnessed Metal Sonic suddenly turn around and run out of the room down the hallway after Sonic.

"Hey!" Raymond chased in pursuit after Metal Sonic.

Meanwhile…

Knuckles was valiantly holding his own against Metal Knuckles on the second floor of the base. He ducked again as Metal Knuckles swung and pounded a crater in the wall, then in response, clipped Metal Knuckles with an uppercut to the chin. Metal Knuckles was sent flying backwards as Knuckles charged after him in fury. As Metal Knuckles landed on his back, Knuckles raced over and landed a glancing blow with his elbow to Metal Knuckles' face, severely denting it.

However, Metal Knuckles lashed out and tripped Knuckles, then kicked him in the side. As both of them slowly recovered and cautiously got back up, they began circling each other, feinting punches.

"How would you like me to fix that face of yours?" Knuckles taunted as he dodged another punch, then countered with his own, landing a blow to Metal Knuckles' chest. It caved in slightly as Knuckles punched it again and again, stopping when Metal Knuckles grabbed his arms and lifted Knuckles over his head. Metal Knuckles then slammed Knuckles into the wall, creating a small crater. As Metal Knuckles stepped back, Knuckles painfully got up off the ground, one side of his face bleeding freely.

"Grrr…" Knuckles growled. He picked up a sharp piece of concrete off of the ground and held it threateningly in front of him. Then, he whipped his arm and flung it like a ninja-star at Metal Knuckles' body.

Metal Knuckles simply sidestepped as the concrete piece embedded into the wall on one point. It retaliated by charging over and swinging wildly at Knuckles' head, who in return ducked and tripped Metal Knuckles. As Metal Knuckles landed on its back, Knuckles hefted a large piece of concrete over his head and brought it smashing down on Metal Knuckles' face, severely damaging it.

"!" Suddenly, Metal Knuckles leapt up, pried Knuckles off of itself, and raced down the hallway towards the stairs.

"Wha…! Hey come back here coward!" Knuckles chased after it, shouting angrily.

Basement:

Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina were anxiously waiting inside the cell.

"Tails… do you think they're alright?" Cosmo worriedly asked Tails, who turned back to look at her with a determined expression on his face.

"Of course! I'd imagine they're kicking Eggman's rear by now!" Tails encouragingly replied, though he himself wasn't too sure. It had been a long while since the alarms were set off, and he was now doubting himself…

Galaxina was sitting on the bench, bent over in anxiety. She was looking down at the floor at her feet, thinking to herself.

"Oh please be okay Sonic…Knuckles….…Raymond…" She kept thinking over and over in her mind.

Impatiently, Tails shook the bars that made up the wall. "What's taking them so long?"

Suddenly, Sonic burst into the corridor that connected the cell to the stairs that led to the first floor.

"Hey guys!" Sonic encouragingly called out to Tails', Cosmo's, and Galaxina's surprise and delight.

"SONIC! I KNEW you would save us!" Tails exclaimed in joy, grinning.

Sonic flashed a grin back. "Let's talk later after we've rescued you guys and we're somewhere safe… Better move back guys!"

Tails and Cosmo moved back from the bars as Sonic spin-dashed right through them, creating a hole they could escape through. As Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina stepped out of the cell, Galaxina suddenly spoke up.

"Where's Knuckles..? And Raymond…?" Galaxina worriedly asked Sonic, who in return shrugged. "Knuckles probably got himself lost, and Raymond I think is probably owning Metal Sonic right now…"

"Metal Sonic?" Tails asked Sonic who nodded.

"Yep, he's back..! Eggman built him again to try to beat me, but Raymond managed to hold him off while I came down here and helped save you guys!"

"He isn't here… do you suppose-?" Galaxina was cut off when Raymond suddenly bounded down the stairs in front of them.

"Hey guys-!"

"Raymond!" Galaxina ran over and hugged him tightly. "You're safe! You're okay!" She exclaimed in relief.

Raymond smiled. "Of course I am! 100 percent okay!" He suddenly noticed Galaxina crying on his shoulder. "What's wrong…?"

Galaxina turned to look at him, smiling sadly. "Sorry… it's nothing, I knew you'd be okay. It's just the excitement today have really gotten to my head…"

"Come on guys, we don't have any time to waste!" Sonic shouted and was about to lead them up the stairs when…

CLANG!

Metal Sonic appeared in the room limping, still slightly burnt from Raymond's attack. Sonic and the rest of them cautiously backed off as it raised its arm cannon at them. An image of Eggman suddenly appeared on a screen on its upper body.

"Hohoho!" Eggman cackled as Sonic and Raymond gritted their teeth in anger.

"Eggman!" Sonic and Raymond shouted.

"Aha, well well, seems like you guys aren't escaping anytime soon!" Eggman snickered.

Sonic growled. "It's two against one Eggman! There's no way Metal Sonic can stop us!"

Eggman threw back his head and laughed. "So you think! But what if I do… THIS?" Metal Sonic abruptly lifted his arm and shot a bullet aimed straight at Galaxina.

She screamed, and shielded her face, when suddenly, Raymond leapt and dove across, blocking the bullet's path to her as it hit him head on.

"NOO! Raymond!" Galaxina shouted in anguish as the impact from the bullet sent Raymond skidding into a pile of empty boxes as he disappeared under a pile as they fell on him.

"No… it…can't…" Galaxina tried to rush over to where Raymond fell when Sonic stopped her from running out into the open where Metal Sonic could easily shoot her.

"Let go of me!" Galaxina shouted, trying to break free from Sonic's grasp. She struggled, but to no avail as Sonic's grip was too strong. "…." She helplessly sank to the floor, sobbing as Tails and Cosmo tried their best to comfort her.

Meanwhile, Eggman watched the whole procedure in delight.

"Hohoho! One down, one more to go, SONIC!" Eggman cackled as Metal Sonic charged up its power cannon and aimed it straight at him. "Goodbye, Sonic the hedgehog!"

Metal Sonic fired a laser, aimed right at Sonic's head…


	21. Chapter 21

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 45

Eggman's base

8:26 pm

"Goodbye, Sonic the hedgehog!" Eggman maniacally cackled as Metal Sonic lifted one hand and pointed it straight at Sonic's face. It charged up its arm cannon, filling the air with an ever increasingly loud high-pitched sound. Metal Sonic was just about to fire it when out of nowhere, Knuckles charged into Metal Sonic from the side as it shot, making the laser harmlessly hit the ceiling instead. Both of them were sent crashing into the hard ground, grappling to land a blow on each other's face. Knuckles righted himself on top and raised a fist over his head, bringing it down smashing into Metal Sonic's face over and over again, slowly cracking it open. As Metal Sonic desperately tried to get up by rolling over and pushing Knuckles away, it was hit from behind by a furious Sonic. Metal Sonic was sent skidding past Knuckles, who grabbed it and flung it to the ground, breaking its arm cannon in half. As it slowly stood up, Sonic growled angrily and spin-dashed right at its unprotected back. However, this time Metal Sonic was prepared, and easily dodged the attack. It leaned out of the way as Sonic harmlessly whizzed by, almost crashing into Knuckles.

As Sonic nearly tripped and fell, Knuckles charged at Metal Sonic again, only to be rudely introduced to its fist.

"Oof!" Metal Sonic slammed Knuckles to the ground, and agilely jumped back as Knuckles tried to grab its feet to trip it. Knuckles slowly got back up again, as Sonic this time tried to attack Metal Sonic. Sonic appeared to spin-dash right at Metal Sonic head on, but at the last second, Sonic jumped to the left, and in midair, connected a punch to Metal Sonic's shoulder, making it stagger backwards for balance. Again for the umpteenth time, Metal Sonic was sent flying, when Knuckles ran up pounded his fist into its face. As Metal Sonic wildly staggered around trying to balance itself, Sonic jumped up and delivered a punishing blow to its head, cracking it in half. Metal Sonic slumped to the ground, its wires and circuitry sticking out in random places. Electricity crackled as its entire system short-circuited, shutting it down.

Sonic and Knuckles was about to also slump down to the ground in exhaustion when Metal Knuckles entered and joined them in the narrow corridor, swinging its fists in the air in front of it.

"I… I… don't think I can take anymore…." Knuckles panted, sticking his tongue out. Beside him, Sonic was groaning in pain, feeling the bruises he had gotten earlier starting to feel very sore.

"…" The two of them got up and backed off into the corner, protectively holding their hands out in front of Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina.

Concerned for what might take place next, Sonic turned back to look at Galaxina, who was still crying. "Galaxina… look at me…"

Slowly, Galaxina turned her head to face Sonic. Sonic sighed, and continued. "Whatever happens, even we give up our lives to protect you guys, I want to you to run out of here as fast as possible!"

"But Raym-?"

"Galaxina…" Sonic looked into her tear-stained face. "He knowingly gave up his life for you so that you could live on. He wanted it to be this way, please understand that… after failing to protect Emily, he tried his best to protect YOU to the very end… I'll bet he's happy that he could finally-"

Galaxina started to cry again. "He's dead! How can you say that?" She retorted angrily. "How can you say that Raymond's happy now that he's dead and I'm in pain over his death?"

Sonic sighed. "No, you're wrong… Galaxina… he would have NEVER wanted you to feel sad or hurt …"

"…." Galaxina suddenly leapt forward and hugged Sonic tightly, tears pouring down her face. "Oh why Sonic? I… I don't even do anything helpful or useful or… or…. but yet he gave up his life for me! Why?"

"Just like Emily did to him, he loved you enough to give up everything for you… even his life..."

Galaxina stopped her tirade and turned to face Sonic once again. "He… loved me…?"

Sonic nodded. "Why else would he do something like that…?" Galaxina started to cry harder as Sonic sighed sadly again. "Remember… always remember Galaxina… he'll always be right there… in your heart…" Sonic pointed at Galaxina's heart as she slowly placed both hands over it.

Galaxina again broke down crying, as Sonic looked at his feet sorrowfully.

"Do you think this is where it ends?" Knuckles casually asked Sonic, resigned in defeat.

Sonic shrugged. "Raymond fought and died valiantly protecting them, and it's time we do the same! This is our final stand against evil, time to eradicate it all!"

Metal Knuckle menacingly advanced on the group, baring its metal fists. Sharp spikes suddenly protruded from the knuckles on them, at least two inches in length. It reared back its head and roared in a metallic voice.

Knuckles turned to look at Sonic, managing a small, tired smile. "The 'Final Stand' huh?"

Sonic grinned fearlessly back and nodded. "This is where it truly ends! We fight until the end, even when we're staring death and defeat in the face!"

Both of them yelled out and charged at Metal Knuckles heroically…


	22. Chapter 22

Mobius: The Final Stand Ch. 46

Basement: Eggman's base

8:34 pm

Sonic and Knuckles charged at Metal Knuckles, teeth bared, yelling out fearlessly, when suddenly…

The pile of boxes in the corner of the corridor suddenly shifted and tumbled out of the way as Raymond miraculously stood up, scowling boldly. His fists were clenched tightly, a defiant smirk on his face. As he slowly unclenched them, a single bullet fell out of his mechanical wristband and clattered to the floor, bouncing a few times. While jumping in the way of the bullet, it had embedded itself in his wristband instead of himself…

"….." Sonic, Knuckles, Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina were all dead silent in shock as Raymond turned to face Metal Knuckles head on. He slowly, but deliberately walked over the singed corpse of Metal Sonic and stopped a few yards right in front of Metal Knuckles.

Metal Knuckles simply roared again and ferociously swung at Raymond, who easily leaned back as Metal Knuckles' spiked fist passed harmlessly by in front of his face. Enraged, Metal Knuckles jabbed at Raymond's chest, but met only air when Raymond sidestepped, avoiding it. As Metal Knuckles' forward momentum carried him forwards, Raymond spun around and landed a roundhouse elbow attack to the back of Metal Knuckles' head. It staggered, and fell over, a huge, gaping hole in the back of its head where Raymond had struck it. As it collapsed to the ground, Galaxina was the first to run over to Raymond, tears freely flowing from her eyes.

"Galaxina…" Raymond managed a small smile and held his arms out wide as if to accept an embrace when suddenly he felt a stinging blow across his face as Galaxina suddenly slapped him.

"Wha-? What was that for?" Raymond asked in shock, dropping his arms to his side.

"YOU ALMOST GOT YOURSELF KILLED!" Galaxina choked, sobbing. "YOU-" She broke down crying and ran over to embrace Raymond tightly, nuzzling her face in his shoulder. "You…..almost died!"

"Shh…." Raymond gently stroked her long, azure hair, wiping the tears off of her face. "But I didn't…"

Everyone remained silent, the only sound being Galaxina crying on Raymond's shoulder. Finally after a while, she turned to look up at him.

"Raymond… why did you do that for me…?" She quietly whispered, looking into his eyes, her own eyes wide open with wonder and curiosity.

"Because I…. because I…. I…." Raymond just couldn't bring himself to admit it. "I…."

He was interrupted when Galaxina shushed him and kissed him gently on the lips. The two of them held each other, remaining like that while the others watched on, smiling warmly.

Finally, Raymond and Galaxina broke away, smiling at each other through their tears.

"I told you I would come back and rescue you, no matter what!" Raymond lightheartedly said, making Galaxina giggle.

"Yeah, you're right…" She smiled, but then faltered. "But… can I ask you to make a promise to me?"

"Sure, what is it?"

Galaxina sighed, and continued. "Can you… Raymond… promise that you'll try your best to stay alive and not do anything like that again… if for anything, at least for me?"

"I…" Raymond hesitated as he looked deeply into Galaxina's eyes. "I…. promise…."

Again, tears flowed down Galaxina's face as she hugged Raymond tightly again. "Thank you…" Galaxina whispered. "Thank you… for being there when I need you the most…"

Raymond smiled warmly. "No problem…"

Sonic cleared his throat and grinned at Raymond. "You sure won't go away easily huh?"

Raymond smirked. "Nah, looks like you guys will start having to get used to me sticking around!"

Sonic chuckled and shrugged at the same time. He then turned to address the group. "Come on guys, let's get out of here now…"

Sonic started to spin, and spin-dashed right through one of the walls, easily crashing through the steel structure. Sonic opened a hole, leading out into the dark night outside. The warm late summer breeze gently flittered by as they filed out of the base, glad to be out in the open, fresh air. As they slowly walked through the tall grass, towards the dark trees that made up the forest surrounding them, Sonic turned around and gave one last look at the base.

"You lose… Eggman… evil never wins… remember that…" He whispered, and turned back around. He sped through the night as the rest of them followed him back to where they lived.

Meanwhile…

Eggman bad naturedly cursed as he saw with his closed-circuit security cameras them escaping from the base. Next to him stood Bocoe, Docoe, and Bokkun, watching the monitor silently in disbelief.

"Well THAT sure didn't work boss.." Bokkun mockingly retored, as Eggman furiously pounded his desk in anger.

"No matter, I had no need for them anyways… I can always rebuild Metal Sonic and Metal Knuckles to be stronger and more difficult to beat. And besides, my 'ultimate' army has already begun their march onto Mobius City…. AND plus they didn't defeat my THIRD super-robot…!"

Behind Eggman and his robots stood a single, solitary figure, watching their conversation with apathy. It lifted one of his hands, and lazily shot a stream of fire from it, melting part of the wall next to him. Metal Raymond seemed to smirk as the fire died away, leaving a huge, charred hole in the steel wall.

Eggman didn't really need Tails, Cosmo, and Galaxina as prisoners anyways, there was no stopping his wrath that he would pour out onto this world, beginning with his invasion of Mobius City. Contrary as it might seem, things have only JUST begun to get started…

-END OF PART 2-


End file.
